Canton approves $90,930 purchase of two mobile surveillance trailers; police describe retention and access controls

Canton Township trustees approved a sole‑source purchase Aug. 26 for two MBT‑3001 law enforcement surveillance trailer systems from Industrial Video & Control for $90,930.

The board waived bidding and approved the purchase after police staff said the mobile platforms are needed for proactive and reactive deployments at large community events such as Liberty Fest. "These cameras would support in a reactive manner, if an event was to occur," Director Bau (speaker 5) told the board, adding they also help "displace issues" at large events. He said the choice was coordinated with other agencies, including the Michigan State Police, which uses compatible systems.

Trustees asked how long footage is retained and who can access it. Deputy Chief Bailly (Pepe, speaker 9) explained the technical workflow: video is downloaded to a locked, secured computer in the unit and the police department retains the storage card; IT staff may assist in scrubbing data per policy but "IT would never actually gain access to the information" without police direction, and access is logged, he said. "Only the police department has access to that computer that's inside," Bailly said.

Why it matters: The purchase ties into broader questions about surveillance, data retention and privacy. Trustees pressed staff about retention schedules, oversight and whether footage is uploaded to larger databases; staff said data is kept locally and destroyed per FOIA and discovery deadlines after retention periods and that the department maintains logs and oversight as part of accreditation responsibilities.

What the board approved: the purchase of two MBT‑3001 mobile trailers for $90,930 from Industrial Video & Control; staff said the systems will be used for temporary deployments and evidence capture when needed. The record shows the motion passed by voice vote.