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Council reviews expanded Flock camera grant, placement and privacy concerns
Summary
Council reviewed an amendment increasing the Flock camera grant to about $51,000 to fund an extended pilot and discussed camera locations and privacy adjustments after residents raised concerns about cameras pointing toward homes and parks.
The council reviewed an amendment to an earlier grant award for the Flock automated license‑plate reader (ALPR) pilot and discussed the planned camera locations and privacy safeguards after residents and council members raised concerns about the devices’ angles and 24‑hour recording.
City staff and Police Chief Bryant summarized the updated award: the state award had been supplemented, boosting the total available to roughly $51,000 and allowing the pilot to run two years rather than one. “That just allowed the pilot program to be extended,” a staff presenter said; staff indicated the supplemental funds came from the same state agency and did not require a new application.
Police and staff described the proposed camera map and the rationale for specific placements: main arteries into the city, park parking lots and locations near the Veterans Memorial. Chief Bryant and a Flock representative said some cameras were sited slightly outside city limits to widen capture of vehicles entering the city; staff said those locations could be moved inside the municipal boundary if the council preferred.
Councilmembers and residents pressed staff about privacy and scope: Vice President Ferguson and Councilman Herring questioned a camera sited on Brightfield Road outside the city limits and raised objections to 24‑hour recording directed toward park spaces near residences. The chief said camera angles had been adjusted to focus on parks and parking lots rather than private homes; staff said they had worked with Flock technicians to “get the angles where it won't be pointing at people’s houses” and planned to mount one camera on a standalone pole behind the Veterans Memorial to capture backside activity without filming residences.
Councilmember Herron asked when an ordinance or policy specifying permitted camera use and retention would be prepared; staff said they would follow up with the city attorney and expected to draft proposed use and oversight policies. The council asked staff to return with final placement plans and angle diagrams before hardware is permanently installed.
No final vote was taken at the work session; staff said the amendment to the previously accepted grant would be placed on a regular meeting agenda for formal acceptance if the council wanted to record the increase in a resolution. The council’s immediate direction was to refine placements and privacy angles and provide the ordinance/policy draft for review.
