After two years of planning, city officials in Reading Eagle, Pa., located about 35 miles west of Philadelphia, voted unanimously to commence the city’s video surveillance system.
The city council awarded a $1.48 million contract to CelPlan/Wi4Net of Reston, Va., for the first 22 cameras, expected to be installed in two or three months, according to the Reading Eagle.
The cost includes the cameras, plus installation, setting up a fiber optic network throughout much of the city, construction of a monitoring station to be located in City Hall, and operating expenses for the second through fifth years, according to the newspaper.
Police Chief William Heim told the newspaper some of the cameras will be wired and others will be wireless and mobile. They will be installed in neighborhoods surrounding the downtown area.
The city has committed $390,000 from its capital improvements budget and recently received $1.7 million in federal funds, most of which will be used to pay for the surveillance solution. An additional $100,000 is coming from a state grant, Heim told the newspaper.
