Municipal officials this week approved a $67,500 contract to purchase five license plate readers and eight security cameras for the New Canaan Police Department, to be installed around town.
The contract with Flock Group Inc. will “supplement what we currently have” at NCPD, according to Police Chief John DiFederico.
“We currently have 10 cameras,” DiFederico told members of the Board of Selectmen at their regular meeting, held Tuesday at Town Hall and via videoconference. “This is to get into a contract for five more and eight video cameras. This will be in addition to the 10 we currently have with the company.”
First Selectman Dionna Carlson and Selectmen Steve Karl and Amy Murphy Carroll voted 3-0 in favor of the contract.
The funds are coming from a state grant that the town’s grant writer, Greg Reilly, was able to secure, DiFederico said.
“Through the good work of Greg Reilly we’ve got this covered by a grant,” he said. “This will cover us for this year and next fiscal year, through fiscal year ‘26.”
Karl thanked Reilly, who was in attendance at the meeting.
The funds are coming from what the chief referred to as an “auto theft” grant—money to be used to combat stolen vehicles, a regional and statewide problem—and instead of using it for overtime, “which we didn’t feel would be very effective,” DiFederico said, “we petitioned the state to let us use these for auto theft deterrents and investigations.”
“We’ve been pretty successful in that and the state agreed, and the grant is going to cover it,” he said.
DiFederico said the town hopes to “get some dual use” out of the video cameras downtown.
“Not only will they be a criminal deterrent, criminal investigation but also slip and falls, and any kind of other shoplifting that occurs in the downtown area,” he said.
NCPD in the past approximately five years has bolstered its monitoring of criminal activity in the downtown and in public parks with the installation of security cameras.