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West Des Moines council approves City Detect contract amid privacy objections
Summary
After extended public comment and council questions about data ownership and transparency, the council narrowly approved a one-year City Detect pilot agreement for AI-assisted code enforcement, voting 4–1. Critics urged more limits on vendor access to raw images and open-records procedures.
The West Des Moines City Council approved a contract to pilot City Detect’s AI-assisted code-enforcement system following extended public comment and debate, voting 4–1 on the consent item.
Public commenter MJ Hook told the council the contract was “a terrible, grossly one-sided contract,” arguing the vendor would retain “raw data” and could train models or sell derived products without adequate transparency. Hook told the panel the agreement’s definitions put images and other unprocessed material outside the protections promised to residents.
City Attorney Jessica, who participated in contract negotiations, said staff secured a clause preventing City Detect from selling raw data and incorporated privacy policy language into the city contract to protect residents and the city’s legal obligations. “We would not have presented it to the council if we did not equally feel that there were adequate protections,” Jessica said.
Councilman Hudson, who opposed immediate approval, said he could not support the item at this time and announced he would vote no: “I can’t speak to the future, but I just don’t think it’s the right choice at this time.” Other council members said staff negotiated unusual protections in the agreement and that the item could be revisited during the two meetings that follow if new concerns arise.
The motion to approve the City Detect agreement passed 4–1. Mayor Russ Trimble noted the council can move to reconsider within the next two meetings if members or the public identify additional issues.
What happens next: The City Detect system is expected to be deployed as a pilot under staff oversight; council members asked staff to continue monitoring privacy, redaction/blurring practices, and whether third parties receive data for model training. The mayor and legal staff invited residents and commenters to meet with staff for follow-up questions and indicated the council could re-open the matter if needed.
