This week, the Waterloo regional police service’s CCTV camera initiative reached an important milestone as Kitchener, Cambridge, and the region agreed to participate.
The project aims to set up 52 cameras at 10 different spots throughout the municipality to enhance investigative efforts.
Once installed, these cameras won’t provide live feeds; instead, they will be used retroactively for investigations. Any footage not part of an active case will be deleted after 30 days.
“There will be no traffic enforcement, no live-monitoring and no bylaw enforcement. This is essentially to create a network of strategically-placed cameras around the region, driven by data,” said Police Chief Mark Crowell.
Regional police have established agreements with the City of Waterloo and the Township of North Dumfries; however, the Township of Wilmot council chose to delay signing an agreement with the police service.
The City of Kitchener council approved an agreement with the Waterloo Regional Police Service during a meeting on Monday, allowing them access to city-owned infrastructure.
Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic and three councillors expressed concerns about privacy regarding this program.
“I was born in a country where that lack of privacy existed,” said Vrbanovic. “I’ve also visited countries in Asia where cameras are being used and have crossed that line.”
A committee from the Region of Waterloo has also moved forward with approvals for participating in the CCTV camera program.
“Don’t do anything that would jeopardize you by being seen by one of these cameras and there won’t be any concerns about privacy,” said Councillor Jim Erb.
In Cambridge, officials released a statement on Tuesday announcing their intention to collaborate with police on this CCTV camera initiative.
“These agreements reflect our commitment to keeping Cambridge a safe community for residents and visitors to enjoy while working collaboratively with our partners at WRPS,” said Mayor Jan Liggett. “They are part of our ongoing efforts to improve how we work together to respond to issues in the community while ensuring privacy, accountability and public trust remain a priority.”
Even though agreements are set up, regional police have yet to install cameras in Waterloo as they work through arrangements with all relevant stakeholders for a coordinated approach, according to Inspector Jarrett Brown from the Innovation and Modernization division.
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