Residents urge pause on proposed license-plate cameras as chief withdraws funding request

Public comment at the July 6 Southbury Board of Selectmen meeting focused on concerns about proposed automatic license-plate reader (ALPR) cameras, with residents urging the board to pause the project and seek wider public discussion.

David Manning of Oxford told the board he opposed installation of "Flock" ALPR cameras in Southbury, calling the systems "mass surveillance" and saying they provide "constant 24/7/365 tracking of vehicles." Manning thanked the Board of Finance for postponing a funding decision and said Chief Grillo had withdrawn his funding request "for now." Manning cited examples of other jurisdictions reviewing or deactivating similar systems and urged the Selectmen to consider residents' privacy.

Sharon Cameron of Kettletown Road echoed those concerns, citing local news reports describing towns that had halted use of Flock cameras and noting requests for public records about who had accessed the data. Cameron told the board that once surveillance infrastructure is in place it can be difficult to remove and urged caution.

First Selectman reported that, following public comment at the Board of Finance, Chief Grillo rescinded the request for ALPR funding at this time but added that the topic could reappear at future meetings. The board did not take further action on the cameras at the July 6 meeting.

Why it matters: automatic license-plate readers capture vehicle location data at scale and have raised privacy and data-sharing questions in other communities; Southbury residents and Selectmen signaled they want more public discussion before committing public funds or contracts.

What’s next: the Selectmen noted the item may return to a future agenda; no vote or procurement was approved at this meeting.