Longmont will begin placing cameras in parks, greenspaces and other locations throughout the city in an attempt to curtail graffiti, tagging, vandalism and other criminal acts.
The city council learned last night the camera project will begin in Lanyon and Carr parks and later expand to 30 other locations including alleys, parking lots and arterials in and out of the city.
Police want to head off criminal activity in areas that attract a lot of calls to report criminal activity but officers often arrive too late to apprehend the wrong-doers, Assistant Chief James Brown told councilors.
“We have an inability to identify possible perpetrators coming into and leaving town,” Brown said. “Our goal is to increase public safety.”
The city will pay $3,000-$5,000 per camera for a two year trial, Brown said. The cameras will not be hidden. There are also restrictions on who will access the video content and how it is managed, he said. The content will only be housed for 10 days and will not include facial recognition.
The project will also include special cameras for license plate recognition, officials told the council.
The cameras will not be used to target any particular demographic and for behavioral analysis, he said.
A vendor will be selected soon to begin the placement of the cameras, city officials said.
