The Collegedale Police Department will be getting new, state of the art body and car cameras and police radios. At the commission meeting on Monday night, commissioners approved replacing old police equipment that is outdated and/or in need of repair, with the latest technology.
Police Chief Jack Sapp asked the board of commissioners for 32 body cameras, but to make sure that each officer and the city would be protected if there was an incident, the commissioners voted to buy 35.
The reasoning was that one lawsuit, for whatever reason, would cost the city more than the three additional cameras that could be used to prove what had occurred. The 35 will be enough body cams for the city’s 26 full time officers, two codes enforcement officers and seven extras that will be available for the reserve officers or available if a camera is out of service for repairs.
Each body camera will cost around $700 and the contract with the supplier, Axon Enterprise, Inc., will be for five years. The city will pay an equal amount of the total cost for each of the next five years. And after two-and-a-half years, the cameras will all be replaced with new ones that have the latest technology. The price also includes all equipment and services related to operating the cameras. The added units make the cost go $10,000 over budget this year, but the old cameras that are in use now will be declared surplus and sold to generate some money.
Nearly 100 percent of the car cameras being used now also need to be repaired or replaced, said Chief Sapp. He asked for 36 new cameras that will be bought over a five-year plan. They will cost the city $67,000 each year of the contract for a total of $335,836. The number of car cameras will update the current fleet of vehicles plus a couple of spare units. Like the body cameras, the car cameras will be replaced with new ones after two-and-half years. These prices will be locked in for the five-year contracts.
Police radios that are currently being used are reporting failures and issues, said Chief Sapp, and they, too, need to be replaced. The commissioners approved buying 30 new radios, which will cost $157,088 including all the equipment and fees for using them. Federal COVID relief funding will be used to cover the entire cost of these radios.
The Tennessee Department of Transportation has a program which the Collegedale Municipal Airport has used for a long time. This program provides some maintenance at no cost to the city. The commissioners voted to sign an agreement which will allow TDOT to seal coat and remark the runways.
Looking forward to the annual Independence Day festivities, the commissioners approved for Touch the Sky Events and Promotions, LLC to manage the city’s July 3rd Freedom Celebration this year. The cost of the fireworks show for July 3rd has increased from the original amount in the agreement with Pyrotecnico of $27,000. That same show will now cost $33,000. The commissioners voted to pay the $6,000 increase rather than shorten the display by 10 minutes.