POLAND — Poland Township has joined Mahoning Valley communities considering, or already using, license plate readers known as Flock LPR cameras.

Police Chief Greg Wilson recently explained to township officials that the LPR designation by Flock Safety, in fact, stands for License Plate Reader.

The Flock Safety system can read a vehicle license plate and take a photo of the vehicle for identification purposes. It also can send an alert if the license plate comes back to a wanted person, stolen car or vehicle involved in a crime.

Flock Safety, an Atlanta, Ga., company, has been signing agreements with communities throughout Ohio for the high-speed, computer-controlled camera systems that typically are mounted on street poles.

Wilson said he believes these would be a benefit for the township.

“They will help serve the community by providing an extra layer of security,” he said.

“They will notify us of an entered stolen vehicle and wanted persons. We will be able to search other local jurisdictions for vehicles that were suspect of committing a crime in Poland. These cameras will also help us identify persons who commit crime in Poland as well as act as a deterrent for people who want to commit crimes.”

CAMERAS AND DATA

The cameras cost about $300 each with the annual operation fee of $2,500 per camera. That fee covers the storage of information and photographs for up to 30 days.

The photos of every vehicle that drives past a camera are stored along with the time and direction of travel.

The camera reader sets off an alarm if the license plate has been entered in connection with a wanted person (owner), a stolen vehicle, an abduction or a lost senior (such as someone with Alzheimer’s disease). The alarm goes to the host agency and, in the case of towns with Flock LPRs, the plate can be tracked.

Officers from police departments that have these cameras are able to access the photos from the patrol car or from a cellphone.

“You cannot view footage unless you purchase a camera,” Wilson said. “We will be able to view other police departments’ cameras for testing purposes.”

Wilson said there is grant funding available, and he intends to apply for it. The amount the township receives would determine how many cameras the department would purchase.

OTHER PLACES

Wilson said Canfield and Niles are the only local entities that use the Flock LPRs.

The solar-powered cameras are placed on metal poles near the road. In Canfield, the cameras on black poles are easy to spot.

At a January meeting of Canfield City Council, police Chief Chuck Colucci explained the system and said 14 cameras were located at main routes in and out of town. All 14 are up and functioning.

In Canfield Township, the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Department wants to place five cameras. Trustees discussed the issue at their Jan. 10 meeting. The cameras were expected to be placed on Palmyra and Tippecanoe roads. Trustee Joe Paloski suggested the township pay the $300 per camera, and the sheriff’s department could pick up the annual fee.

Youngstown City Council’s safety committee expressed interest late last year in a proposal to install automatic license plate-reading cameras throughout Youngstown, but the police department’s head of detectives said it is “cost prohibitive.”

In Boardman Township, police Chief Todd Werth is aware of what the cameras can do, but he feels this year his department is not looking into the system — instead working on other purchases and changes.

“At this time the (Boardman Police Department) is finishing up several technological improvements (body cameras, vehicle dash cameras, etc.) that we need to focus on,” Werth said. “After that, we may look closer at some of these systems.”

Liberty Township trustees in June approved adding six cameras for the police department.

In Cortland, police Chief David Morris told city council members that he would like the city to get the Flock cameras. Morris said the city of Niles has had “great success” with its Flock cameras, and that two Cortland crimes have been solved thanks to Niles’ cameras.