Why did Norton council reject Flock camera system again? Here's what we know
Norton City Council members last week grounded a Flock camera system in the city for the second time in nine months.
In June, the council gave the thumbs-down to an $80,000 proposal that would have placed 15 cameras in the city.
More:Norton rejects surveillance cameras a week after Akron's approval of Flock Safety system
This time, a scaled-back version would have placed four cameras at two points along Barber Road. The Fred Martin Superstore auto dealership offered to pay for the system for two years after experiencing a rash of vehicle and catalytic converter thefts.
Here are some things to know about the decision.
What are Flock cameras?
The Flock Safety product is a surveillance camera company headquartered in Georgia. Its cameras read license plates, and its clients include police agencies and homeowner associations. The data acquired is entered into a database available to clients that purges after 30 days.
More:Why Norton is reconsidering an 8-month-old decision to reject Flock camera system
The company says its cameras do not use facial-recognition technology and have helped to significantly reduce crime at many locations.
Who owns Flock Safety?
Founded in 2017, the company has raised hundreds of millions of dollars from various investors, including Matrix Partners, which also owns Jingwei Investments, based in China. Jingwei is described as a provider of data mining, interactive marketing and software services.
Why did council reject a plan Fred Martin offered to pay for?
In comments at Monday's meeting, council members said businesses showed wide supportfor the plan, but residents remained opposed.
"I don't have the faith that these things will not be abused," said Councilwoman Charlotte Whipkey.
Councilman Doug DeHarpart said he supported the cameras as a business owner, but his constituents did not.
"A lot of local residents, they don't want the Flock cameras," he said. "My job as a councilman is to work for the people and the vast majority of people that I've talked to that are citizens don't want it."
Who voted for and against the proposal?
DeHarpart, Council President Paul Tousley, Whipkey, and Councilmen Jamie Lukens and Ben Bates all voted against an ordinance to approve the cameras. Councilmen Scott Pelot and Joe Kernan voted to approve it.
Don't other local cities have Flock camera systems?
Yes. Several Summit County municipalities have installed the camera systems, including Akron, Twinsburg, Macedonia and Northfield Village.
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Leave a message for Alan Ashworth at 330-996-3859 or email him at aashworth@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @newsalanbeaconj.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Why did Norton council reject Flock cameras again? Here's what we know
