Sunset Beach council approves up to $15,156 to replace police interview‑room video system

The Town Council authorized the police department on Dec. 31 to purchase a cloud-based interview-room camera and storage system for up to $15,156.34 after hearing that the existing in-house server had become unreliable.

Police staff described recurring software and reliability problems dating to March; a vendor quote originally priced the package at $25,688 before offering a reduced price of $15,156.34. "We started having issues where we asked our IT to meet with ... Motorola to try to get this fixed. It would come up. It would go down," the chief said, explaining why the department has been running interviews on officers’ body cameras as a stopgap.

The chief told council the cheaper quote is valid only until the end of December and that subscription fees for years two through five could raise the multi‑year cost unless the vendor allows subsequent payments. Councilmember Sean Arnold moved to approve the purchase at the reduced price and was seconded by William Brohm; councilmembers voted to approve the expenditure and asked the chief to return in January with final subscription-payment details and any required budget amendment.

Councilmembers also discussed whether vacancies and carryover in personnel lines could be reallocated to cover part of the purchase and whether the town could pay subscription years annually rather than up front. The chief said some carryover is expected because vacancies will remain until new hires start, but salary-line funds cannot be moved into equipment without Council approval.

Next steps: the police chief will ask the vendor whether subscription payments can be spread over time, return with updated cost options at the January meeting and, if necessary, request a budget amendment to reconcile the purchase.