Schenectady turns an unblinking eye on crime Police-monitored cameras, wireless Internet system part of plan to make downtown more appealing
by MIKE GOODWIN, Staff writer - Time Union

SCHENECTADY -- When people visit the soon-to-be built cinema or other downtown attractions, they might unknowingly become the stars of a different kind of movie.

With the Bow Tie Cinema, Proctor's Theatre expansion and millions of dollars in other projects under way or on the drawing board in downtown Schenectady, officials now want to make sure visitors feel safe by installing eight around-the-clock security cameras around the city's commercial strip.

The cameras, which should be in place and connected to the Police Department by fall, are intended to deter crime and convey a sense of safety in an area that Mayor Brian U. Stratton and others concede suffers from an unwarranted reputation as a dangerous place.

The exact locations of the cameras downtown isn't yet clear.

District Attorney Robert M. Carney's office will use a $75,527 grant from the state's Division of Criminal Justice Services to attach the cameras to a wireless Internet service that Logical Net, a local firm, announced Tuesday it plans to build downtown. The cameras will "address the public perception that downtown is dangerous," Carney said.

Cameras are already in operation in other parts of the city. Carney's office operates three video cameras in Hamilton Hill and Union College uses cameras to deter crime on its campus. But the downtown project is the city's most ambitious endeavor in both its size and goal of deterring crime in an entire city neighborhood.

The Metroplex Development Authority is using millions of taxpayer dollars to convert downtown into a dining and entertainment hub for the Capital Region and will pay $146,000 to Logical Net to build a wireless Internet system downtown that in addition to connecting the cameras will provide online access to computer users downtown.

But critics said the project may be an unwarranted invasion of privacy.

"Does the crime rate in that particular area really warrant the invasion of people's privacy? It may, but that's something that should be shown by statistics from the police department," said Melanie Trimble, director of the Capital Region New York Civil Liberties Union.

"They can't just anticipate that the crime rate is going to go up when the Metroplex is complete," Trimble said. "Just trying to make the public safe doesn't justify putting cameras up."

But Carney, who said the Hamilton Hill cameras have captured images of a shooting and other crimes, said, "We're not looking into bedrooms. We're not looking into houses."

"As long as we're looking at public spaces, which we're doing, there is no privacy right," Carney said.

Other cities around the country are monitoring public spaces with security cameras including Chicago and New Orleans, where supporters said they have deterred crime.

Earlier this month, Chelsea, Mass., announced a plan to install 34 surveillance cameras around the city, according to The Boston Globe. The cameras are intended for use as a routine part of police work in the city.

Taking a stroll downtown, Rafaela Jones, a worker at the downtown headquarters of Capital Off-Track Betting, called the cameras a good idea.

"With all the crime and things that are going on today, they should be aware of what's going on," she said. "They should put them all over."

But Lynn Townsend, a Schenectady resident who was passing time on a concrete bench outside Center City, said cameras are an unnecessary invasion of privacy.

"I just don't feel right about the cameras being everywhere," she said. "But it's the 21st century and people probably get photographed 20 times a day and they don't even know it."

Logical Net plans to move its operation from Colonie to the third floor of a building the Picotte Companies owns at 530 Franklin St. Metroplex, funded by $7 million in annual county sales tax revenue, is giving the company a $150,000 low-interest 10-year loan plus $85,000 to cover relocation costs.

Computer users would pay no fee for the initial minutes on the wireless system, but Logical Net will charge for longer usage.

Company President James Constanzo said he expects approximately 50 of the more than 60 employees who work for Logical Net and two connected companies will move to the Schenectady offices.

Officials hope the existence of a wireless system downtown will attract other companies to Schenectady.

"Young workers want to open a laptop any place, any time and access the Internet," said Schenectady County Legislature Chairwoman Susan Savage.

Back to Press Releases