Syracuse city police are planning to install up to 25 new surveillance cameras in certain crime-prone locations throughout the city.

The new cameras are being funded by a $400,000 technology grant from the state Dormitory Authority, which is the finance and construction jurisdiction of New York state facilities, according to a Syracuse.com article.

The decision to use this grant money for the cameras was approved by Syracuse’s Common Council last week in an 8-1 vote.

Neighborhoods receiving the new cameras include Washington Square Park on the North Side, the Richmond/Wall Street area on the West Side and the Upper Onondaga Park area on the South Side, according to the ordinance written by the Common Council.

Last winter, the city of Syracuse used another state grant of $224,500 to install 16 police cameras in two areas on the North Side, according to the Syracuse Police Department’s weekly memo. This is the first time the Common Council is using funding from Dormitory Authority to install these cameras.

The Dormitory Authority’s goal is “(to) provide financing and construction services to build facilities for higher education, health care, and other not-for-profit institutions that serve the public,” according to its website. The authority provides a number of grants to a variety of state agencies, including the New York State Technology and Development Program.

“The funding was obtained through the grant that the Syracuse Common Council received and is being given to the neighborhoods that requested cameras,” said SPD spokesman Lt. Eric Carr.

In other words, a community has to have wanted a camera and requested one from the Common Council in order to receive funding.

Though crime rates, especially in the categories of violent and property crimes, are falling, according to the annual FBI crime report, there is still a push in the Syracuse law enforcement office to crack down on gang violence.

“They act as a crime deterrent,” Carr said. “These cameras make it less likely for criminals to commit a crime, because they know they are under surveillance.”

These cameras are not covert, Carr said; they comprise of a large box on a pole with a camera inside. There is an SPD logo on the side of the box, and there is a blue light on the top that flashes throughout the night.

If a crime does occur in the vicinity of a camera, Carr said detectives or officers assigned to the case can fill out a request form to view camera footage during a certain time frame. Eventually the form goes up to the police chief, and if he believes the request is warranted, the technology processes the tape and gives it to an officer or detective, Carr said.

“These cameras will be placed in different areas around the city,” Carr said. “The exact placement will be determined later.”

Cameras have not been around Syracuse for very long. The first nine cameras were installed only five years ago on the North and West sides, according to a 2010 Common Council press release. These cameras were funded with $125,000 of federal stimulus money, according to the release.

Carr said he hopes installation will begin soon. He added that the work is extremely weather-dependent, and each neighborhood will have its own start and finish date.

Published on October 21, 2015 at 9:52 pm

Contact Hanna: hrhorvat@syr.edu