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Youngstown seeks cameras to monitor crime downtown, S. Side
YOUNGSTOWN
The city plans to seek proposals in four to six weeks for surveillance cameras to help police officers monitor — and deter — criminal activity on downtown’s West Federal Street and on the South Side near St. Dominic Church, said Police Chief Rod Foley.
The plan also would include police having access to surveillance cameras at private businesses and at the church on East Lucius Avenue, he said.
“We’re concerned about the bigger presence of individuals [potential criminals] downtown,” Foley said. “We may not always be there, so this will help deter crime. We’ll be able to monitor the area.”
The city would start with about two to three of its own cameras at a cost of about $25,000 to $30,000 on West Federal Street between Fifth Avenue and Central Square, Foley said. Also, cameras at private businesses would be connected to the city system through a computer software program, he said.
The cameras would be monitored at the police station.
There have been a handful of crimes committed downtown in recent months.
Two business owners, who have surveillance cameras but haven’t had problems with crimes, said they like the idea and will cooperate with police.
“I’m always suspicious of a surveillance state,” said Jacob Harver, owner of the Lemon Grove Cafe and Lounge at 122 W. Federal St. “Overall, I think it certainly can’t hurt. It’s a good idea. It’s probably worth doing. The anti-authoritarian in me is concerned about surveillance cameras.”
But that hasn’t stopped Harver from having cameras inside his restaurant.
“The ones we have helped with minor things,” he said. “People take someone’s coat by accident. The cameras come in handy. They’re good for loss prevention.”
Dominic L. Gatta III, owner of the Federal Building and a partner of the V2 Wine Bar Trattoria inside that structure at 100 W. Federal St., supports the proposal.
The Federal Building has exterior surveillance cameras.
“If the police can use them it will help both of us,” Gatta said. “I have no issue at all with this. I’m all for keeping the area safe. This would only help.”
Though downtown hasn’t been a hot spot for crime, the area around St. Dominic’s has been a problem for several years.
The city would start with a few cameras in that area and use cameras at the church and surrounding businesses, Foley said.
“It’s a slow, but ongoing process,” he said. “You have to build a foundation. You’ve got to set up the right system.”
The city will seek proposals from companies for the cameras and software to tie the private cameras to the new system in four to six weeks, and have the equipment installed by the end of the summer, Foley said.
The cameras will be in plain sight, he said.
The chief said he’s not concerned that criminals will damage the cameras, which will have a live feed round-the-clock.
Youngstown is looking to Pittsburgh as a model. That city installed surveillance cameras in 2009 with $4 million it received from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
“We want people to know they’re there,” Foley said. “It will deter crime, and we can use it to identify people, cars and license plates after crimes are committed. It’s a cheap way to add presence.”
The long-term goal is to expand to Youngstown State University, which has its own surveillance cameras, to other streets downtown, and to take in more of the South Side, Foley said.