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Council weighs three police-camera proposals, asks staff for warranty and labor details
Summary
Council reviewed three security-camera bids (On-site, FOSS Security, Dakota Surveillance), discussed 4MP vs. 8MP resolution, cloud vs. hard-drive storage, and warranty differences; staff will return with clarified warranty, labor and recurring-cost figures before the next meeting.
Committee member (S5) presented three vendor proposals for town police cameras and outlined the planned locations (fire station, Lions Park and along Highway 81), explaining that one existing golf-course camera would be replaced with a refurbished unit while the town would purchase three new cameras for other sites. "So, I understand, you know, that we're looking to have good quality cameras, but we don't need to go kill in our budget for trying to get our get accomplished what we wanna get accomplished," the committee member said, urging fiscal caution.
Members compared vendor proposals: On-site offered a cloud-based system with three new cameras and a refurbished camera for the golf course; FOSS Security's quote was approximately $17,800 (not including labor and travel); Dakota Surveillance's package was costlier at about $24,993.43 and used different camera hardware. Committee members discussed image clarity and recommended 8-megapixel units over 4-megapixel where possible. "The 8 megapixel will be much clearer than the 4," another member said.
Council questioned recurring costs and storage models. Several members noted that cloud systems carry monthly fees while a hard-drive/desktop-style recorder would require capital outlay but avoid ongoing subscription charges. A member asked staff to obtain missing warranty and labor information: the refurbished golf-course camera would not carry a warranty, while the three new cameras under one vendor would include a five-year warranty, according to the presentation.
The council did not make a final purchase at the meeting. Instead, members asked staff to return at the next meeting with clarified quotes that add labor, travel and warranty details, and to check whether all four cameras could be specified as 8MP as a like-for-like comparison. The council requested costs for ongoing cloud fees if the cloud option is selected.
