Lavonia City Council Approves Expansion of FLOCK Surveillance System
Courtesy Flock Safety Systems
The Lavonia City Council has voted to approve the addition of up to eight new FLOCK cameras for more roads in the city.
At their meeting Monday night, the Council voted for the addition after hearing from City Manager Charles Cawthon.
Cawthon said the company that manufactures the security camera system was raising its monthly rate beginning in January and he recommended the Council approve the purchase of the new cameras before the end of the year to lock in their current rate.
If all eight are purchased, the new surveillance cameras will be placed on Highway 17 South @ Lankford Road, Highway 77 @ Beasley Street, Highway 59 South @ Stone Bridge Road, Highway 17 North @ North Fairview Road, Bear Creek Road @ Allen Farm Road, Parkertown Road @ Blue Bird Lane, Smith Road @ Railroad Crossing, and Pleasant Hill Road @ Highway 17.
Some of those intersections will have two cameras in each direction, and one will have four cameras.
According to their Website, Flock Safety’s patented Vehicle Fingerprint™ technology lets law enforcement search by vehicle make, color, type, license plate, state of the license plate, missing plate, covered plate, paper plate, and unique vehicle details like roof racks, bumper stickers, and more.
At the meeting, Chief Shane Edmisten said the three they have now have already been instrumental in solving several crimes because of a feature that connects all law enforcement agencies using the FLOCK system.
City Councilman Andrew Murphy credited the use of the FLOCK surveillance system with helping to find his stolen truck and return it quickly.
The total annual cost for the three current cameras plus up to eight more cameras (if all eight are purchased) Cawthon said would be $55,000 a year.
He said the new cost would need a budget amendment after the first of the year.
After hearing from Cawthon, Chief Edmisten, and Councilman Andrew Murphy, the Council voted unanimously to approve the purchase of eight more FLOCK surveillance cameras.