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Surveillance
cameras spark four public meetings A heated debate is expected tonight at the first of four public forums on a proposal for surveillance cameras in downtown Peterborough. The proposal from the Downtown Business Improvement Area (DBIA) is scheduled from 7 to 9 p.m. at Princess Gardens, 100 Charlotte Street. Tonight’s town hall meeting is being hosted by the city as part of the guidelines from the Privacy Commissioner on proposals for use of surveillance cameras, says Walter Johnstone, DBIA executive director. “I expect we will get some very polarized viewpoints at this first meeting,” Walter says. “With four meetings, we should get a continuum of opinions.” The DBIA has asked city council to approve the installation of five surveillance cameras in the downtown core, igniting a backlash in the form of the Stop the Cameras Coalition. The DBIA would pay the installation costs, estimated at about $60,000, with the city picking up the operating tab for monitoring the system, according to the DBIA proposal. Surveillance cameras have been shown to be effective in deterring crime in other centres, Johnstone says. There have been some serious crimes downtown such as assaults, a bank robbery and a swarming as well as about $50,000 worth of windows broken annually, he points out. “We surveyed our membership and 83 per cent of those who responded are in favour of installing the cameras,” he says. “We didn’t get one property owner who was opposed to the idea.” The DBIA has more than 560 members and 20 per cent (about 112) responded to the survey, Johnstone said. “For our members, that is an exceptional response to a survey,” he says. The coalition has been circulating a petition opposed
to the surveillance cameras and established a website where arguments
against the installation of the cameras are listed. “The cameras are an infringement on our basic civil liberties and fundamental rights as Canadians,” the Coalition states. The Coalition claims there is no mechanism for public scrutiny to ensure the cameras and videos will not be used for the wrong purposes. Johnstone says there are rigorous standards that have to be met regarding the use and monitoring of the cameras. One of the privacy commissioner’s guidelines is to have community consultation and city hall decided to hold four meetings for public input. Additional meetings will be held June 3 at Market Hall on George Street, June 9 at St. George’s Anglican Church on Braidwood Avenue and June 16 at the Chamber of Commerce board room with all meetings scheduled from 7 to 9 p.m. After the last meeting city staff will present a recommendation to city council for a decision. If approved, the cameras could be in operation by the fall, Johnstone says. |
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