Tonight, Troy’s City Council will debate whether to renew a contract with flock safety, the controversial security camera company that is at the center of privacy concerns.
License plate readers are up for debate in the Collar City. Officials say they have a purpose, while residents say they feel less safe.
Dierdre Shea and their partner noticed the camera near their home last summer in the city’s South-Central neighborhood.
Shea says, in January, she reached out to her council representative looking for more information.
“She got back to me, and she said, you know that camera has been on that corner since 2023 and I said, ‘no way like I would have noticed it,’ but I didn't. And I think that just speaks to like, the invisibility of this surveillance infrastructure. That is quite alarming,” Shea said. “I mean, one of the talking points is that these cameras prevent crime, but if you don't even know where they are, how are they preventing people from bad actions before crime happens.”
Shea says more transparency surrounding the cameras is needed to make residents more comfortable.
“It's right in the middle of my neighborhood, and I didn't have any consent,” Shea said. “I've lived there since 2021 I didn't have any understanding or knowledge or awareness that this was happening, or that this was an option, that this was going to be put up in my neighborhood.”
According to the police department, no complaints about the technology, which has been in place for more than five years, were submitted before this year.
The city has 26 ALPRs placed throughout the city. A spokesperson for the city says locations cannot be disclosed for “law enforcement purposes.”
At Thursday’s City Council finance meeting, the all-Democrat council will debate renewing the two-year contract with Flock Safety for $78,000 per year. The city’s current contract ends March 31. In the fine print of the contract though, it states “This Agreement will automatically renew for successive renewal terms of the greater of one year or the length set forth on the Order Form (each, a “Renewal Term”) unless either Party gives the other Party notice of non-renewal at least thirty (30) days prior to the end of the then-current term.”
In an email, Flock Safety says it “does not discuss specifics regarding contracts.” The city says, while the contract does state it will automatically renew, the hardware company is “on standby” as the legislation makes its way through the council.
In a letter sent to the council, police Chief Dan DeWolf wrote that “They all [Flock ALPRs] provide a significant aid during our response to criminal and/or emergency incidents within our Troy community.”
Regarding privacy concerns, Deputy Police Chief Steve Barker says the city has full ownership of footage, which is automatically deleted after 30 days. Barker says the city has used license plate readers for more than 17 years.
“Flock cameras are license plate readers only. They are not 24/7 live surveillance cameras. They are designed to specifically detect license plate numbers and capture images of vehicle, make, model and color,” Barker said. “These cameras do not detect or analyze any facial or physical features of individuals or the vehicle occupants. There is no live feed being monitored by our officers or anyone else. The system simply captures vehicle information that can then later be used in investigations.”
Mayor Carmella Mantello calls the movement “an effort to begin defunding our [police department.]”
Council President Sue Steele, a Democrat, told WAMC that license plate readers have “regrettably” become an important tool for local law enforcement but that she has “extreme” concerns over safeguards.
“I believe, that safeguards should be implemented to assure that we control the data of those cameras. We have verbal assurances, I think that if there's any way we can write them into the contract, that would give me greater peace of mind,” Steele said. “I'm very grateful to all of the people in Troy who have spoken up, on both sides of the issue. It has brought out a lot of a lot of citizen engagement and that's what the council encourages. I am very unhappy with the way the mayor has tried to politicize this, to insinuate that the council is defunding the police is an absolute falsehood. There's no basis for that, and she has intentionally held this contract until the very end it's due. It expires March 31 we've been asking for the contract for a great deal of time, and she has not produced it. So, I do not believe she has been acting in good faith with the Council on this issue.”
Late last year, the Town of Poestenkill, also in Rensselaer County, and Stewart’s Shops turned down the chance to host the cameras for the Rensselaer County Sheriff’s Department. The cameras would have been placed on town property at the intersection of Plank and White Church roads and at Stewart’s locations throughout the county. Both the town and Stewart’s used resident resistance as the reasoning to not host the cameras.
Troy’s City Council will meet at 6 p.m. tonight.
