ATLANTA — Atlanta City Council is considering a proposal to require all new commercial and residential buildings to install exterior cameras.
The cameras would have to be compatible with the Atlanta Police Department's Video Integration Center, giving the police department full access to the footage.
City councilman Howard Shook sponsored the proposal, which would change city building code to include the camera installation requirement.
"We know that areas that are saturated with cameras tend to see crime being diminished," he said. "And lord knows, we know how important camera footage is in leading to arrest and making solid cases in court afterwards."
Shook says he already has the support of Police Chief Rodney Bryant, and is now hoping to collect more feedback from the community about potential exceptions and concerns before the council votes on the proposal Aug. 9.
He says he expects it will pass.
"I can't imagine a reason why someone wouldn't think this was a productive idea," he said. "We're down 400 cops. And so what this is really going to do is in a way provide some coverage to help sort of close the gap."
Even if the proposal doesn't pass, there are outside efforts already underway to get more cameras rolling.
"We are in the midst of a crime epidemic," said Jim Durrett, president of the Buckhead coalition.
Durrett is is helping raise nearly $2 million in 2021 from businesses and residents for crime prevention, including 28 additional security cameras and license plate readers to be installed around town.
"If people are aware that they are likely to be caught on camera, then perhaps they will be less likely to break the law and suffer the consequences of being caught," Durrett said.
If the city proposal passes council, the cost of installing the cameras would fall on the builders, but Shook says it’d be a drop in the bucket for most.
"If you're a big developer doing a big project, I mean, the cost is a rounding error," he said. "And you should want to let your customers and tenants know that you care about their safety."
Shook also said they may write in exemptions for certain smaller construction projects.
"I don't think it's anyone's interest in having a little standalone mom and pop florist shop having to spend a couple thousand dollars on cameras," he said. "I think it's logical that we would establish kind of a threshold."