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Residents urge Saint Francis to opt out of county Flock camera pilot over privacy and costs
Summary
Several residents urged the Saint Francis City Council to opt out of an Anoka County pilot that would place Flock automatic license-plate readers and related data services on roads through the city, citing privacy, accountability and possible long-term taxpayer costs; supporters said the system aids crime solving.
Public comment at the July 20 Saint Francis City Council meeting focused heavily on an Anoka County pilot project that would place Flock automatic license-plate readers (ALPRs) and related camera systems on roads serving the city.
Aaron Hill, a resident, told the council the pilot would "plug Saint Francis into a nationwide privately owned database" that "tracks the daily movements of every citizen who drives to work, drops their kids off at school, or goes to the grocery store." He asked the council to use any opt-out right available, put cameras on a referendum if necessary and impose a moratorium on ALPR and autonomous-drone deployments until public input is secured.
Megan Williams, another resident, echoed privacy and cost concerns and urged caution about building a permanent surveillance network. "The question is whether we want to build a permanent surveillance system that records the movements of thousands of innocent people every day," she said, adding that the county's first-year underwriting of the pilot could shift to municipal costs later and that policies can change with administrations.
Dustin Pavick, a resident and member of the planning and zoning commission, spoke in favor of the cameras, saying he has seen the technology used in a metro city and that it had been effective in some investigations. "All it would take is one abducted child to come through the city to get caught that everyone will be wow," he said.
Councilmembers and staff discussed next steps: staff said there are currently no fixed cameras in Saint Francis and that the sheriff's office is running the pilot. Officials said the county paid the first year and that ongoing allocation of operating costs and site selection would have to be negotiated with participating cities. Several councilmembers asked the county to return to a regular meeting to present fuller technical and policy details and to answer residents' questions.
Mayor and council members said they wanted more transparency before making a final policy decision and agreed to invite county representatives back to explain data access, retention, local controls and the long-term funding model.
The city did not take a formal vote on joining or opting out of the pilot during the July 20 meeting; council members directed staff to schedule the county to return with more detailed information at a regular meeting.
