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Council approves 12‑month drone first‑responder pilot for downtown response; initial cost $320,000
Summary
The Wichita City Council approved a one‑year pilot to deploy automated drone ‘hives’ for rapid response to priority calls in a defined southern Broadway area; staff said the system can reach many priority calls in under two minutes. Initial buildout is funded from a technology fund, with ongoing costs estimated at $61,000 per year.
The Wichita City Council approved a 12‑month pilot for a Drone First Responder (DFR) program that would place an automated drone “hive” at Fire Station 2 (1240 S. Broadway) and allow near‑instant drone deployment to priority emergency calls in the surrounding area.
What the pilot would fund: Deputy Chief Paul Duff of the Wichita Police Department said the recommended option (the “crawl” configuration) includes three docks in a single hive and three drones. The initial first‑year cost is $320,000; infrastructure modifications to Fire Station 2 (roof reinforcement, wiring and related work) were estimated at about $30,000 to be funded from facility maintenance funds. Staff said the city manager’s innovation/technology fund would pay the initial $320,000 for the pilot. If the program continues after the pilot, recurring annual costs were estimated at about $61,000.
Operational claims and restrictions: Staff said the DFR configuration can respond to thousands of priority calls within a 1.5‑mile radius; in the chosen geography staff said about 98% of priority calls fall inside the hive radius and about 80% of those calls could be reached within two minutes. Duff described integration with existing Axon evidence and flight‑tracking systems and said flights and the reason for deployments would be visible in a transparency portal. He emphasized restrictions in policy: drones would be deployed for high‑priority emergency needs such as in‑progress crimes, missing persons, search‑and‑rescue and tactical operations; the department said it is not using facial‑recognition technology.
Privacy, transparency and public concerns: Public comment and council discussion raised privacy questions. Faith Martin (resident) asked whether recordings could be made public and whether the city would require additional safeguards such as altitude limits or limits on nighttime flights; Duff and the city attorney’s office said the department follows FAA rules and state law and that records requests would be handled under the Kansas Open Records Act with standard exemptions applied. City staff also noted the department’s public drone dashboard and said the citizen review board can view policies. Council members requested follow‑up on the policy and audit transparency; staff said they would return with additional information if needed.
Action: Council voted to approve the pilot and authorize necessary signatures; the motion passed unanimously.
