Lancaster council approves three‑year contract for CityDetect AI cameras to aid code enforcement

The Lancaster City Council voted to approve a three‑year contract with CityDetect to deploy vehicle‑mounted cameras and an AI platform to identify property maintenance problems across the city.

City staff said the program will initially equip two parking enforcement vehicles with CityDetect cameras within roughly 60 days of approval, with two additional units to be added to city‑owned street sweepers by November. Sam McNutt, the city’s community preservation manager, described the rollout and the human review process: “The deployment timeline is 60 days after approval. Designated staff members will monitor and review incoming photos, assigning priority levels based on severity,” McNutt said.

In a presentation, Michael Kaplan of CityDetect showed results from a December pilot and described how the system works: “We drove for about two hours. We captured 1,163 images, analyzed that many parcels, and identified 840 unique issues,” Kaplan said, and he emphasized that the tool “is not automatic” and that a staff review remains part of the workflow. CityDetect staff explained the company performs a 30‑day calibration period to tune detections to local conditions and said the platform aligns detections with the International Property Maintenance Code to match code enforcement cases to identified issues.

Staff said the platform produces heat maps, daily reports and routed lists for crews to pick up roadside debris. City staff emphasized that enforcement actions would remain a staff decision; Kaplan said the system produces case files that can be uploaded into the city’s existing case‑management software, with future plans for an API connection between systems.

Council members asked about privacy, use on partnered waste hauler trucks and possible future use for public‑safety analytics. Staff said there is no plan to automatically issue letters or citations without staff review, and that the city will start with parking enforcement vehicles and city street sweepers because some third‑party haulers have objected to cameras on their trucks. McNutt said staff will work with the police chief and other departments if future uses are considered.

A motion to approve the contract (New Business Item 1) was made, seconded and the council voted to approve the item.

The contract term was described as an initial three years; staff said operational details, calibration and human review are part of implementation. The council and CityDetect presenters noted potential uses beyond code enforcement, including roadside collection workflows and citywide inventories, while reiterating that enforcement decisions will be made by staff rather than automatically by the AI.

Implementation details provided at the meeting included the 60‑day initial deployment, addition of two street‑sweeper units by November, the 30‑day calibration period, and examples of object/attribute detections (for example, “cars on lawns,” debris piles and mattresses).