The Byrnes Mill Police Department soon will install license plate-detection cameras at four spots in the city.
The cameras take photos and video of license plates when vehicles travel past them and alert the police department if a stolen vehicle or one suspected of being involved in a crime are in the city.
“With four well-placed cameras, I can monitor traffic coming in and out of 90 percent of my residential areas and monitor for stolen vehicles, felony warrants, missing persons, silver alerts, Amber alerts,” Police Chief Frank T. Selvaggio said.
He said he doesn’t know when the cameras will be installed, but they will be placed at Lower Byrnes Mill Road and Hwy. 30; Upper Byrnes Mill Road and Hwy. 30; Gravois Road and Franks Road; and Byrnes Mill Road near Hwy. PP.
Selvaggio said the department will buy the four cameras from Flock Safety of Atlanta, Ga., and the cameras will cost $51,650 spread out over a five-year period.
He said the department will lease each camera for $2,500 a year and pay a one-time installation fee and connection fee of $1,400, plus a one-time $250 fee to connect the cameras to the department’s computer system.
Selvaggio said Flock Safety submitted the lowest of two bids for the cameras.
The Board of Alderpersons voted 4-0 to use American Rescue Plan Act funds to buy the cameras. Ward 1 Alderperson Glenn LaVenture and Ward 3 Roben Harris were not at the meeting.
Selvaggio said the cameras should help police solve crimes.
“I think it’s going to be like having an extra officer or two on the streets all the time,” he said.
Selvaggio said he plans to use the cameras for serious crimes, including felony warrants.
“It is not my intention to locate people with minor outstanding warrants,” he said. “We are using these cameras for an added layer of protection, and that means keeping felons and stolen vehicles out of our city.”
Selvaggio said similar camera systems were used by the Washington University Police Department, where he worked before coming to Byrnes Mill.
“They were very effective at solving criminal incidents,” he said. “I know the value of these types of camera systems.”
He said the Eureka Police Department and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office also have had success using the cameras.
Eureka purchased four cameras in 2021 and the Sheriff’s office purchased two cameras and started using them in May 2021.