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With the punch of a few key strokes, Papillion's police chief and city administrator can monitor Papio Bay Aquatic Park, Halleck Park and Sumtur Amphitheater from their desks.
Papillion's newly installed wireless surveillance cameras have powerful lenses that can zoom in and out, pan and tilt.
One high-powered video camera monitors the swimming pool area. Another video camera records the parking lot at Papio Bay. The digital cameras also are planned for Eagle Hills and Tara Hills golf courses.
The system began operating during the past month.
The next milestone: On-duty police officers will be able to access the live, 24-hour video feeds from inside their cruisers beginning in September. The city will start with three cruisers and determine later whether to add the computer software to more police cars.
Papillion officials view having a citywide surveillance system as a leap forward in protecting multimillion-dollar public assets from vandalism, property damage, arson, loitering and other criminal mischief.
“Obviously, it gives you value-added capabilities if there is an incident at the amphitheater,” Papillion Police Chief Leonard Houloose said. “It obviously gives us another set of eyes. We can access 24 hours of video, so it's not just preventative. But it's helpful for investigations after the fact.”
Papillion is one of the few Nebraska communities using sophisticated video surveillance systems. South Sioux City, Neb., has more than 300 closed-circuit video cameras and 13 mobile “graffiti cameras” trained on schools, playgrounds, city facilities and graffiti hot spots along public streets and alleys.
South Sioux City Police Chief Scot Ford said his city of 12,000 residents currently has four surveillance cameras with features similar to those of Papillion's system.
Papillion residents see the cameras both as a tool for police and as a possibly intrusive system with potential for misuse.
Papillion resident Mario Acosta said the city should post signs at all the locations with the surveillance cameras — especially Papio Bay — so patrons are fully aware they are subject to being filmed.
“People need to know these cameras are on,” Acosta said. “I don't see the other places as being a big issue, just the swimming pool stands out to me. That is kind of a touchy subject. I can see that some women may decide to not even go in there, if they knew they were being video recorded.”
Another Papillion resident, Jeff Bowlin, said he has no objection to the locations selected by the city for video surveillance systems, including Papio Bay.
“It's public property they are protecting,” Bowlin said. “If you can keep an eye over these areas, teenage kids might not go in there and mess things up. Then, that's good.”
Papillion City Administrator Dan Hoins said he is drafting a written policy on access and use. Hoins said the city has tried to ensure that the system will not be misused.
The cameras would not be used “to watch people” at the swimming pool. None of the video cameras are positioned to monitor locker rooms or bathhouses, Hoins said.
The cameras also won't be positioned to view the homes and yards along the golf courses. “Those cameras cannot be used to peer into someone's residence,” said Houloose, the police chief. “This is strictly for all public-access areas of the city.”
He and Hoins said the city has sound logic for installing surveillance cameras at Papio Bay. Police have investigated numerous cases of daytime vehicle break-ins and purse thefts over the last few summers. The pool has been targeted by late-night vandals and by trespassers who scaled the fences to swim after hours.
“We want to provide technology from a safety and security standpoint,” Hoins said. “The broad concept is to protect the city's assets.”
Papillion's neighbor, La Vista, has no immediate plans to spend city funds to acquire remote-access surveillance cameras.
“Budgetary limitations are preventing our ability to do that,” said La Vista Police Chief Robert Lausten. “We also don't have a tremendous amount of vandalism to justify the expense.”
Omaha police spokeswoman Lt. Darci Tierney said Thursday that Omaha's surveillance cameras are not capable of providing live video to police cruisers. However, police officials are interested in adding that capability, Tierney said.
In 2008, the Omaha Police Department received a $100,000 federal Homeland Security Department grant for 12 mobile surveillance cameras to post at crime hot spots around Omaha.
In Papillion, only police officers will have regular access to the live video feed once the equipment is working in patrol cars, Hoins said.
Until then, Hoins, the police chief and information technology staff are among the few city employees with off-site access to the surveillance cameras.
City department heads, City Council members and new Mayor David Black do not have access, Hoins said.
“There will be very limited access, and we will have a very good system to create a safe and secure environment throughout the city,” Hoins said.
Contact the writer:
444-1056, john.ferak@owh.com
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