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By: Guest Writer (159)

CameraGate:  Red-light safety or city revenue?

With budget woes, Bellingham passes on safety in favor of cash. Starting in 2008, Bellingham officials were coached by ATS on how to get Red Light cameras through the city council.

With budget woes, Bellingham passes on safety in favor of cash. Starting in 2008, Bellingham officials were coached by ATS on how to get Red Light cameras through the city council.

By

This guest piece is by several local residents working as volunteers with the Transportation Safety Coalition (TSC).  They spent months of their personal time seeking the documents about the red-light cameras and, once they had them, trying to make sense of them.  TSC provided the authors with the supporting documents and made clear any conclusions the authors draw in the below article are just that - their own conclusions.  All these participants would welcome the opportunity for a public hearing on the red-light cameras in order to address any discrepancies in their conclusions. However, with the complete refusal by the city to allow for public discussion, this article is their story of how this process unfolded.  Comments and corrections are welcome.  NWCitizen is open to a guest article from city hall or someone else connected with promoting the red-light cameras for Bellingham.  - John Servais

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Ever see something that just didn’t feel quite right and nags at you for days or weeks on end? Ever wake up in the middle of the night, sure you have seen something important, but you just can’t put your finger on it? That feeling is what led a small group of local citizens to embark on a local democracy rescue mission that a year later may have uncovered the evidence to answer a national debate – are red-light cameras being installed for revenue or safety?

Just like one of those weeknight 60-minute crime shows, it takes a lot of work to solve the mystery of who did it, the weapon used in the “crime,” and who was behind it. Here in Bellingham though, it’s been a long year for the amateur sleuths, not an hour-long drama. All the main characters are your neighbors. There are no professional investigators, no CSI team doing the work. And while we can produce a paper trail of facts, hypothesize on some issues missing in the timeline, and feel we have the smoking gun, we still don’t know who pulled the trigger. We hope one day we do.

Background
For the Transportation Safety Coalition (TSC), it begins when founder Johnny Weaver, a Whatcom Community College student, heard about the “serious safety problem” requiring red-light cameras as reported in a Bellingham Herald article in August 2010. This “serious safety problem” was a surprise to Weaver, as it was to many local residents, since most of us had not heard of a serious collision issue involving red-light-running in Bellingham. At that point, Weaver began talking to local friends and concluded a local voice was needed to participate on behalf of the community. And that’s how TSC was born.

Bellingham Police Department appears to lead the charge
It was not much later, on September 27, 2010, that two Bellingham Police Department officers gave a PowerPoint presentation to the city council regarding the need to install red-light and speed cameras. The PowerPoint presentation, narrated by BPD Officer Snider, used some very interesting national data, with a little local data mixed in. If you watch the video of the council meeting, the red-light camera presentation begins around minute 115.

This is when the mystery really begins. By the time that council session ended, a lot of information about red-light cameras had been discussed, with the mayor, clearly well versed in the details, filling in a lot of the gaps and stating, “this is not about revenue generation…” The entire presentation looked well rehearsed (especially with the mayor filling in the gaps,) and the council did not sound surprised by the information they were provided. We wondered who was providing them with all this information. Were they already working with a camera company? Or was this all about the city researching a real safety problem? This was our first red flag.

The council decided a public hearing would be appropriate, and we fully expected the city to take an issue this important to the public. The red light camera equipment would require a private, out-of-state corporation to tie their hardware into existing city transportation equipment on public roads. The roads and existing equipment had been funded, built, and maintained by generations of Bellingham residents. This would also be the first time (that we were aware of) our city was willing to turn law enforcement duties over to the private sector. The idea of involving the public in a thorough discussion was not only reasonable, but also prudent.

Public hearing cancellation raises big red flag
Unfortunately, that hearing was canceled due to two local tragedies that took the lives of a child and a college student. We grieved along with the rest of the city at the loss of life.

We, like many in the community, waited respectfully. But after several weeks the hearing had not been rescheduled. The meeting, which was expected to draw a large crowd, never took place. Instead, then City Council Chair Gene Knutson declared (at the weekly council meeting?) the hearing would not be rescheduled and the council had already heard enough from the public to make its decision.

According to the Bellingham Herald (“Bellingham council to decide traffic cameras without hearing”, Nov. 13, 2010), Knutson was quoted as saying, "We just feel that after learning more, we're just going to go ahead and do it."

That was red flag number two. Better yet, as flags go, this should have been called a red banner. You do not schedule – and then cancel - important public meetings about major issues, such as the installation of red-light cameras by a for-profit corporation, unless you have something to hide. Period. What was it the city didn’t want to discuss? Why had they chosen to provide so little technical data to the numerous citizens asking for it? Where was the scientific analysis necessary to come to this significant conclusion? And again, who was providing their talking points?

The city votes 6 to 1 to install cameras
The Bellingham City Council met on Nov. 22, 2010, to decide whether to move forward with the red-light camera program. Though a couple feet of snow had mostly shut down the city, the Bellingham council chambers were packed that night. Among the dozens of camera opponents were students, business people, regular citizens, an ex-police officer, and Tim Eyman. Opponents provided facts about American Traffic Solutions (ATS) the red light camera company, collision studies, personal stories, and information about cities dumping the cameras elsewhere across the nation. Everyone urged the council to re-schedule a proper public hearing. That evening Councilman Knutson said, “I don’t apologize for a minute for canceling the public hearing. Why would I want a public hearing if I’ve already made up my mind?” 

Every council member except Seth Fleetwood said the red-light cameras were not about revenue but about safety. The city moved to approve cameras on a 6 to 1 vote. Fleetwood was the only vote against the cameras.

Initiative begins
Johnny Weaver began exploring the possibility of starting an initiative to give the citizens of Bellingham the opportunity to vote on red-light cameras. He fully expected to go it alone. Some camera opponents did not want to pursue an initiative, and some reluctantly got involved because they were impressed by Weaver's tenacity. Most volunteers had never been involved in an initiative, and most were not excited about the prospect of losing their weekends. As there were no funds for a regular campaign, the group chose the Bellingham Farmer’s Market as the main location to collect signatures and educate the public about the camera program.

Enter Tim Eyman
While there are some who believe Tim Eyman led the entire Bellingham initiative effort, nothing could be further from the truth. But we would not have succeeded without Eyman's willingness to advise us on how to start the initiative, how to organize local citizens to help, and at times offer technical support along the way. This was a Bellingham/Whatcom County grass roots effort, run by a college student and a ragtag team of local residents from across the political spectrum. Our volunteers have given almost a year of their lives to try to stop something we feel goes to the core of our democracy. Eyman helped give birth to Initiative 2011-01, which we are truly grateful for, but democracy learns quickly to walk on its own. And that’s what we did.

Documents revealed and deleted from city website
As the election approached, the Herald reported on a number of issues pertaining to the red-light cameras here and elsewhere around the state. Our own research hadn’t stopped. In fact, we discovered a city webpage, with the title, “Fiscal Alternatives For Stability Taskforce (FAST).” This taskforce included city department heads, managers, and city council members Stan Snapp and Gene Knutson. Pike appointed the group in November 2008 to find new ways of doing business that would provide sustainable, lower-cost approaches to meeting the City's mission. 

Attached to the webpage was a 74-page financial document. Both the webpage and financial document were dated May 2009.  The opening paragraph of the webpage stated, “An internal study group identified City deficit reduction ideas totaling more than $8 million in a report provided this week to Bellingham Mayor Dan Pike. The recommendations focus primarily on spending reductions, though a few describe options for increasing revenue.” One of the 34 recommendations FAST suggested was, “Install a limited number of automated citation cameras in school zones with high levels of infractions and intersections with the most accidents due to drivers running red-lights.” 

For the first time we knew revenue was a big part of the red-light camera program, if not the biggest. What was intriguing was that the 74-page document contained some interesting messaging about red-light cameras as well as anticipated annual revenue to the city of $500,000. This document was revealing and raised another red flag. How did they know they could generate a half-million dollars per year as early as May 2009?

Then, on Sept. 25, 2011, the Bellingham Herald posted the article, “Bellingham council, candidates weigh importance of anti-traffic camera initiative,” wherein council members each stated it was never about revenue. That afternoon a comment was posted on the Herald's online comments section in response, and urged readers to "Google: FAST and City of Bellingham." The post directly scolded council members for their comments in the article. Before posting the comment, which led to the two COB financial documents, the poster verified the documents were still available on the COB website. 

Within 24 hours, the City of Bellingham removed the FAST webpage. The document had been online for roughly two and a half years. Our emails to the council and the mayor asking who had authorized the removal were ignored. Then last month, during the KGMI mayoral debate, the mayor commented that the documents were "taken offline because we automatically take things down after a year."

By this time, everyone on our team realized we were missing something big. What could be so important in that document to make it worth removing after being brought out in the Herald? We still aren’t really sure, except the messaging is similar to other messaging quoted by the mayor and others in media, online, and in meetings. And the messaging included a cost estimate, which the city could not have produced on its own. Like K-9 dogs picking up a scent, we became more focused on the trail and began scrutinizing every document and news article quote. Our research efforts became a major priority. And so the disappearing document leads to another…

Disappearance leads to more documents: Police Protection 2030 Task Force

The FAST report led to the discovery of the Police Protection 2030 Task Force commission, appointed by Mayor Dan Pike and also found by methodically sifting through documents on the web. This document revealed more about the camera program and made it clear a serious amount of work was already underway on the project. “Recent collections of data gathered from observations of select intersections and school zones revealed a large number of law violations…”

What were we missing? Where was ATS, the red-light camera company, in all this? Were they already under contract? Had they been feeding the city information all along? We were beginning to realize that ATS must have been involved since at least mid-2009, more than a year before the public meeting. As the campaign ground on, we continued to seek the missing piece of the puzzle. 

Documents create more questions, TSC pays for answers
The documents on the city webpage, video of council meetings, and quotes by public officials in newspapers created a paper trail showing a lot of repeated talking points, but very little proof or tangible evidence regarding safety. But there was a lot of “selling” the public on red-light cameras through a limited amount of traffic analysis. We had questions about the data, and the city refused to answer. Having researched how data should be compiled for such a massive undertaking, and having researched the problems other city’s were having proving or disproving the need for cameras, we started to pursue a secondary strategy of researching red-light camera safety on our own. We decided it was time to bring in the professionals.

According to the Federal Highway Administration (http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/intersection/redlight/cameras/ipl_guide.cfm), “A red-light camera must work in harmony with the traffic signal at an intersection. It is therefore essential for traffic engineers to be involved in determining whether or not the existing signal system at a particular intersection is compatible with red-light camera applications or if it needs to be modified. Research shows that yellow-interval duration is a significant factor affecting the frequency of red-light running and that increasing yellow time to meet the needs of traffic can dramatically reduce red-light running… In a similar vein, once problem intersections are identified, it is advisable that a traffic engineer be called upon to review the intersection and approach geometry, signal timing details, and other relevant engineering features to ensure that the red-light running problem is behavioral and not the result of an engineering shortcoming. Cameras should be considered/installed only after engineering solutions have been proven ineffective where there is a red-light running problem.”

The city refused to show the public any data proving a serious safety problem (collisions causing injuries or deaths), and we found this refusal to show data had been a problem other cities had experienced. So we hired a well-respected engineering firm to research one proposed intersection in Bellingham. It was a choice of spending our limited funds (mostly our own) on a small advertising campaign, or giving the public some actual science. We hoped the media would pick it up and force the city to respond. It was a gamble. 

We chose Gibson Traffic Consultants Inc. of Everett because they were well respected and had worked for the state and multiple municipalities. The research involved using both Washington State Department of Transportation data (collected by the Washington State Patrol) and city crash data obtained through public disclosure. Guide Meridian was chosen because of the high volume of traffic and the 35 mph speed limit. The other intersections considered were 25 mph, so the Guide should have had more serious collisions.

The report concluded, “the collision data does not support the introduction of red-light cameras.” Specifically, the study determined that photo enforcement had the potential to reduce right angle red-light running collisions by less than one per year, while increasing rear end collisions by an average of nearly five per year for this particular intersection.

Their review of the data showed that in the most recent five years for which data was available, only one collision was caused by red-light running, but none of the right-angle or stop light collisions resulted in any injuries. During that time period, roughly 3.65 million vehicles drove through the intersection. One fender-bender per 3.65 million vehicles should bring the integrity of this entire program into question and bring this project to a grinding halt.

The report also quoted a 2010 Institute of Transportation Engineers Journal article which stated red-light cameras are normally installed after a traffic engineering evaluation showed all reasonable countermeasures - such as increasing yellow light timing and improving visibility - have been tried. It further noted the reason to “conduct such investigations and corrections before resorting to additional enforcement” is that research has shown the cameras can increase collisions.

We felt we finally had all the proof we needed. Unfortunately, the report would gain little traction with local media, though it did make news in other papers around the state, and was posted internationally by the National Motorists Association of Australia. It was also referenced in the just-released WashPirg report titled, “Red-Light Cameras Ahead: The Risks of Privatizing Traffic Law Enforcement and How to Protect the Public.”

Our research leads to one unavoidable conclusion: we, the citizens of Bellingham, were being duped. But what could we do to prove it, when our adversary was a multimillion dollar company, backed by a multibillion dollar bank, and we believed the city was helping them cover their tracks?

Where does ATS fit in?
Roughly five weeks ago the question of what role ATS played became clearer. As we sifted through the remaining data we had, and pondered the timeline, someone realized there had been an early Public Disclosure Request that had been quickly browsed, but never really reviewed. That was when the pieces fell together.

The PDR was 115 pages of emails, mostly between ATS’ Bill Kroske, Vice President of Business Development, and the Bellingham Police Department. And the emails dated back to June 2008 - a full year before we thought ATS had “boots on the ground” in Bellingham. (Editor's note: Bill Kroske was caught posting to the Everett Herald recently under the name JHoward from the ATS Arizona office, and may have been dismissed from office.)

What we found in the emails was disheartening and appeared to prove revenue was the primary focus.

Here are a few samples:
Page 3. June 9, 2008: Kroske makes travel arrangements with Bellingham Police Department Sgt. David Richards, to fly to Bellingham on the 17th.

Page 22. Aug. 18, 2008: BPD to Kroske: City council is aware of red-light camera program two years before first public meeting and has questions about revenue.

Page 26. Oct. 14, 2008: Kroske to city: “We are working hard to get the Eyman proposal killed - hope the people up there are two. Once that is defeated I hope we will be able to move forward on a program for Bellingham.”

Page 37. Dec. 24, 2008: Kroske photo, decked out in Santa hat, Christmas card to city: “Have a wonderful holiday season! I'm looking forward to our working together in 2009...”

Page 41. Jan. 23, 2009: Kroske to Snider: “The income issue really relates to the numbers of intersection violations, and schools on busy streets... which create the most significant numbers.”

Page 44. April 21, 2009: Snider and Kroske plan to meet: “Chief Ramsay and City CAO Webster would like to meet with you about our photo enforcement plans.  I think they may bring other City officials to the meeting too.”

Page 59. May 7, 2010: BPD to Kroske more than six months before first hearing: “As we discussed, the city is moving forward with plans for photo enforcement, but it has not passed through the city's political process and you are assuming some risk of financial loss (site survey expenses), if for whatever reason, the plans for photo enforcement don't work out here in Bellingham.”

Page 65. July 15, 2010: Kroske to BPD; “… as you can tell by the numbers these sites generate substantial returns.” 

Page 85. Sept. 28, 2010: BPD to Kroske: "Bill, Do you have any suggestions for published study results to use in regards to the argument that intersection photo enforcement increases accident rates.”

Page 89. Oct 1, 2010: Kroske to BPD: “As a vendor the media doesn’t want to hear from us, but they are anxious to hear from the city and public. If you agree, we will prepare some letters for submission to the press by people in the community. Attached is a sample letter designed to come from the chief or other senior PD staff. We can do the letters if you can arrange for people to submit them.”

Page 91. Oct. 8, 2010: Kroske to BPD, wants to send pro-camera responses to newspaper: "One negative blogs had a list of ten challenges to the camera program. I have prepared a response to each (attached). I am sure Jarred would print it if you wanted to submit it.”

Page 96. Nov. 18, 2010: Kroske email to BPD: "I understand Eyman is planning to come up to the meeting to support the local college group of agitators (the name sounds like a collage age group at least!). Here is a link of what Eyman had to say in Monroe, and noting he was heading up to Bellingham (click on Speed cameras). What a megalomaniac - he is eating up all the press he is getting.”

Where do we go from here?
We now feel we have the majority of the mystery solved. However, we still don’t know who pulled the trigger. We've heard that in other cities it is typically the mayor, not law enforcement, who receives the first sales pitch. That makes sense, since the mayor would be the starting point for a discussion about revenue. If it were strictly about safety, we would have expected the discussion to begin in the Bellingham Traffic Engineering office. We don’t know if that was the case in Bellingham, though it has been clear for some time (in our opinion) that our mayor was heavily involved from the very beginning. We also feel strongly that this work should have been done and brought forward by the traffic engineering department and not our police department.

It’s hard not to feel our BPD were pawns in a very high-stakes game. We respect our police department, and are concerned the public doesn't understand that licensed engineers are responsible for roadway design and safety changes, whereas our police are responsible for enforcement. We believe this misunderstanding is intentionally used as part of the process to get the camera programs pushed through the process and installed without questions.

What happens now is out of our hands. Now that the election is over and the public overwhelmingly approved our initiative, we expect a thorough review of the entire process. We expect the document generated by Gibson Traffic Consultants of Everett to be read by the council and mayor and action to be taken, either agreeing with or denying its findings.

Furthermore, a clear baseline for determining success or failure of the entire camera program should be determined before moving forward - if we have no choice but to move forward. Hopefully, this time it will be done by certified traffic engineers from the City of Bellingham as we trust they will put our safety first. That is what they are paid to do and are most likely to understand the science of our city’s traffic safety concerns.

We strongly believe installing cameras where there is proof a collision problem does not exist will actually create more collisions with the potential to seriously hurt Bellingham drivers. If there is a serious collision safety problem – prove it – and let’s look at fixing it. If not, let’s not hurt people just to make the city extra revenue.

While we await an answer from the city on their next steps, we are not sitting idle. On Tuesday, November 14, a letter was mailed to the state Attorney General and State Auditor asking them asking them what the appropriate process would be to initiate a complete review of the steps taken between American Traffic Solutions and the City of Bellingham. We believe the city has not worked in the public's best interest and our rights were intentionally compromised during the last three years, yet we also know we are not the experts to be answering such complicated questions. We can only hope that we will get some assistance, and we can work together with the city to put this behind us.

Finally, we also hope a couple lessons have been learned: the public process should not be thwarted; and when used properly, the right of initiative has an important place in our democracy. We should never allow our constitutional rights to be privatized when entering into a public/private partnership.

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About Guest Writer

Citizen Journalist • Member since Jun 15, 2008

Since 2007, this moniker has been used over 150 times on articles written by guest writers who may write once or very occasionally for Northwest Citizen, but not regularly. Some guest writers [...]

Paul deArmond

Nov 21, 2011

Very good citizen journalism.  Taking this further will require the power to compel evidence and take testimony under oath.  The city isn’t going to investigate itself and neither the State AG nor the State Auditor have authority, jurisdiction or will to intervene.  In the ongoing scandals at WWU, the State Auditor refused to get involved in complaints of embezzlement and the AG’s office was active in the coverup.

Pike and the council committed the city to a contract with ATS.  It’s not at all clear that citizens have any legal standing to intervene.  So this may just slither into a situation where nobody gets what they want. 

I suppose the council could enact a specific business tax that would make ATS pack up and leave, just as years ago they created an absurd “adult entertainment” ordinance to prevent a business from opening.

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Larry Horowitz

Nov 21, 2011

Thanks to the guest writers for your research efforts and for publishing this article.  I have a quick question I hope you can answer:

On page 11 of the FAST report (pg 14 of the pdf), the city claims, “Since 2005, there have been 223 serious intersection accidents due to the running of red lights, involving 457 vehicles and nearly 100 serious injuries.”

That’s a very specific claim and appears to provide the ‘data’ proving a serious safety problem.  It seems TSC asked the city to provide the details of these accidents, but the city refused. 

- Is my understanding correct? 
- Does your group believe the city’s claim about 223 accidents is not factual? 
- Do you know who actually prepared the FAST report for the city?  Have you spoken with the report’s author?

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Larry Horowitz

Nov 21, 2011

Though not directly related to the red-light camera issue at hand, the FAST report itself indicates the city has failed to appreciate the true reasons why its “financial well-being is being eroded.”  According to the report (p. 1, Section I: Purpose), “the City of Bellingham’s financial well-being was being eroded by the national recession.”  In other words, without growth, the city’s finances are not sustainable.

The real question is: Why is the city’s financial well being so dependent upon growth?  Has the city become addicted to the fresh new cash inflows that growth provides?  Has the city failed to consider the actual long-term costs of growth and to recognize that the costs of growth continue long after the new cash inflows stop?  Is it possible to establish a city government that is sustainable under a steady state economy?

This is not the venue for going into details, but suffice it to say that unless the city establishes a policy to ensure that growth pays its own way, the city’s financial well-being will forever be subject to the whims of economic booms and busts.  By establishing the use of impact fees, the Growth Management Act (GMA) adopted the state legislature’s intent “that new growth and development pay a proportionate share of the cost of new facilities needed to serve new growth and development.” RCW 82.02.050(1)(b)

It’s clear that impact fees which cover the FULL proportionate share of these costs is necessary in order to achieve sustainability.  Unfortunately, FAST members rejected the idea of increasing impact fees so that costs for new roads, parks, and fire-fighting equipment are fully recovered. Currently, the general fund (through property and other taxes) subsidizes substantially more than half of these growth costs. 

There are many myths about the benefits of growth, but the underlying question is: “Is growth making our community better or just bigger?”

For those interested in more information, consider reading Eben Fodor’s “Better, Not Bigger: How to Take Control of Urban Growth and Improve Your Community.”

http://wcls.bibliocommons.com/item/show/562163044_better_not_bigger

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Dick Conoboy

Nov 21, 2011

I posted the comment below to Paul de Armond’s article on the camera issue and the election results that appeared on 19 Nov.  The comment is more relevant to this discussion, so I am repeating it below.  Parts of the initiative seemed more punitive in nature, e.g., putting a limit on the fines and requiring a re-affirmation of future council actions on traffic cameras.  Given the excellent work that went into this article and the shenanigans it exposes, the likelihood of any city council and any mayor to engage in future red-light camera adventurism is slight. 

“What bothered me most about the camera initiative issue was the conflating of several subjects into the one initiative.  To remind folks, here is the language of the initiative:

City of Bellingham Initiative No. 2011-
01 concerns automated traffic safety
cameras. This measure would require
the removal of any automated cameras
used to issue tickets for stoplight,
railroad crossing, and school zone
violations installed under a 2010
ordinance and prohibit the installation
of such cameras to issue tickets,
unless approved by City Council and a
majority of voters at an election, and
limit the penalty to the lowest parking
ticket fine.

The promoters were asking for agreement on four different issues in the same initiative, which pushed me to vote against it in its entirety.  One aspect was to remove any camera installed under the 2010 agreement.  Second, was to require city council approval of any such cameras in the future.  Third was to require voter re-affirmation of any city council approval of such cameras.  And fourth was a limitation on the fine as a result of a camera produced infraction.  This has to have been one of the most poorly worded and constructed initiatives I have ever read and my hat goes off to the creator(s) who surely had to be a committee that was an offshoot of the builders’ conclave of the Tower of Babel.

I am not opposed to red-light or speed cameras.  I am opposed to the government privatizing the effort as would have been done here.  I think a simple council vote should suffice to pass a law.  If we don’t want our city council to pass laws without another vote from the populace, then we can go directly to citizen vote on any number of issues - pick your favorite.  That will keep the auditor busy and provide plenty of overtime pay to boot.  I also see no reason to limit the fine on these infractions.  Red-light running and speeding in school zones are particularly dangerous offenses and to equate them with a parking ticket is risible.

I am thankful that this initiative essentially carried no weight, except as advisory in nature, because nobody can ever know precisely what one was actually voting for or against.”

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Craig Mayberry

Nov 21, 2011

I did not pay much attention to the specifics of the Bellingham mayor race.  Where is Linville on this issue?  Did she ever come out with a clear statement or did she avoid it so Pike took all of the heat?

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John Watts

Nov 21, 2011

This did appear to be an article based upon some data plus a few interpretations of it, based upon perceptions.
I doubt the initiative accomplished much except for substantial negative advertising, and is certainly advisory in nature.
The City’s financial problems aren’t necessarily based upon the definition of ‘growth’ advanced by Fodor, who flatly states that growth doesn’t pay for itself, regardless of impact fees.
Rather, the decline in local spending on other consumables & non-consumables is likely more reflected in lower sales, B&O and utility taxes collected on business activity, plus the lower interest earned on a number of large funds the City maintains, like water, sewer, reserves, etc.

I keep hoping that concerned citizens would also select recognized, long term problems upon which to focus their attention, like preserving our Reservoir, redeveloping our waterfront and the like.
But, I suspect folks may find smaller issues -like the red light cameras- easier targets because these are often more amenable to popular solutions, and not nearly as daunting as big, complex issues that have lots of moving parts and require constant attention over long periods of time.
If this is true, I can certainly understand it.

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Christy Nieto

Nov 21, 2011

Larry,

You’re right; the FAST report (which none of us knew about until several months ago) does have some broad-sweeping traffic collision data for the entire city regarding red-light running. We do not suggest that information isn’t factual. But it raises more questions than it answers. Where are the most collisions? Are we installing the cameras where we are seeing the most collisions, or the worst collisions? If there were 100 “serious collisions”, why are we installing a camera at SR 539 and Telegraph Road, where there are absolutely no injury red-light running collisions, and only one red-light related fender bender in five years?

The city did not refuse to provide crash data at the six intersections in question, they just could not provide a through analysis of the problem, what actions had been taken before deciding on cameras and how the four intersections and two school zones were chosen over other intersections across the city.

We would refer you back to the section of our article that starts with “According to the Federal Highway Administration”. The FHWA, recommends “once problem intersections are identified, it is advisable that a traffic engineer be called upon to review the intersection and approach geometry, signal timing details, and other relevant engineering features to ensure that the red-light running problem is behavioral and not the result of an engineering shortcoming. Cameras should be considered/installed only after engineering solutions have been proven ineffective where there is a red-light running problem.”

The public expected and deserved to see a thorough investigation of the intersections by engineers, and there should have been some documentation of this being done. We waited and waited, and then received nothing through public disclosure that showed that any real review/research had been completed, and the 115 pages of emails show that there wasn’t really much discussion about safety whatsoever.

And likewise, we’ve seen nothing of substance from a single licensed traffic engineer that works for the city. This should concern folks. In Mulketio, ATS’ Kroske had some heartburn after an email exchange with a real traffic engineer. Note that he isn’t angry about the safety of the community, only the project being “torpedoed”:

“I cannot believe this idiot sent this to WSDOT,” Kroske wrote. “It may have torpedoed the project. Hold up any further work on the submission until I hear from the mayor or city manager. With the engineer on record against it, I expect it will be difficult to get approval from WSDOT.” Aug. 7, 2011 Everett Herald.

Likewise, when it came to the safety of our children in school zones, we wanted to see a data-drive process, not this, which was in one of the emails from ATS’ Kroske sent to Bellingham on Jan.23, 2009: “The income issue really relates to the numbers of intersection violations, and schools on busy streets… which create the most significant numbers.”

One of the two school zones is located within about 100 yards of an I-5 off-ramp at Northwest Ave., which would lead to “busy streets”, as mentioned by Kroske. Have we picked the most dangerous school zones, or the busiest revenue generating zones? We don’t know, but we believe we should before moving forward.

We haven’t spoken to the author of the FAST Report. Our questions have, for the most part, been completely ignored. Then, once the lawsuit was started, the city refused to answer any questions regarding the project outside of our public disclosure requests. And remember, it’s like fishing. You have to know what you are fishing for to get what you want when filing for documents. They do not answer anything or provide any additional details outside the scope of the specific request. It has taken numerous requests to get the details we now have. We expect there is more; we just haven’t asked all of the right questions yet (and we have some requests pending).

I hope this answers your questions. If not, please ask us more.

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David Onkels

Nov 21, 2011

Jeez, Larry,
How did this well-researched article morph into a comment about growth?

Jared Paben posted some spreadsheets based on the City’s own data that effectively rebutted the city’s arguments about accidents.

Back to growth:
You must be aware that the city is not growing, mostly because nobody can build anything that anyone wants to buy in Bellingham at a price that anyone can afford.

Eben Fodor is so twentieth century.

You wrote, “Currently, the general fund (through property and other taxes) subsidizes substantially more than half of these growth costs.”

I would appreciate seeing some data to support that assertion.

You’re fond of statutory references, and I would suggest that you go the goals in RCW 36.70A.020:  “The following goals are adopted to guide the development and adoption of comprehensive plans and development regulations of those counties and cities that are required or choose to plan under RCW 36.70A.040. The following goals are not listed in order of priority and shall be used exclusively for the purpose of guiding the development of comprehensive plans and development regulations:

    (1) Urban growth. Encourage development in urban areas where adequate public facilities and services exist or can be provided in an efficient manner.”

Italics mine, of course.
Draconian requirements for concurrency, based on unsupportable assumptions, don’t fit the definition in 36.70A.020, no matter how much you’d like them to.

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Lisa McShane

Nov 21, 2011

To the authors: thank you, for following those questions until pieces of the puzzle clicked into place.  It was fascinating. Very good job.

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Larry Horowitz

Nov 21, 2011

David,

If you want proof that growth doesn’t pay for itself, there’s plenty of it to be found.  Considering all the research you do for your own pet causes, I’m certain you don’t need me to hold your hand.

If Eben Fodor is “so twentieth century,” the false belief that more growth will solve the problems created by prior growth is pre-historic.  Get real.  If you’re so fond of growth, the burden is on you to prove it’s truly beneficial.  Fodor has already proven it’s not.

Because the authors of this article referenced the FAST report, and because the FAST report identified the recession and lack of growth as the cause of the city’s financial problems, growth became fair game.

I have worked with three Fortune 500 company clients - and numerous smaller ones - in a financial capacity.  I assure you, growth can hide enormous fundamental structural problems - until there is no more growth.  Since infinite growth is not sustainable, neither are structures dependent upon unlimited growth.  Even cancer cells eventually destroy the organisms they inhabit. 

The city’s financial structure is a Ponzi scheme built on infinite growth.  Of course it will fail during recessionary periods.  It’s not up for debate, and I will not debate it with you. 

The city needs to find a way to survive financially regardless of population growth.  But, more importantly, the city needs to collect adequate revenue during periods of growth that cover the ultimate costs of growth, most of which do not appear until existing capacity is no longer sufficient.  Generally accepted accounting principles require businesses to ‘match’ revenues with expenses.  Governments that fail to do so will experience what Bellingham and other municipalities are experiencing now.  It’s not magic, nor is it rocket science.

Of course, the 1% limit on raising revenue is at the heart of the matter.  Any organization whose expenses rise with inflation but whose revenues are capped at 1% will see red ink whenever inflation is more than 1%.  The 1% revenue cap has caused cities like Bellingham to become addicted to population growth.  That situation must be addressed as well.

Sorry, David, I have seen others get sucked into the black hole which is your desperate need for debate.  I’ve got much better things to do.  See if you can figure this out on your own.

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Larry Horowitz

Nov 21, 2011

Christy,

Thanks for responding to my questions, and thank you and your colleagues for taking on this enormous challenge.

The questions you identified regarding the ‘broad-sweeping traffic collision data’ are good ones.  Hopefully City Council will address these as the city moves forward.  Greg Kirsch has identified at least one exit strategy the city could adopt to prevent the cameras from being installed.  Hopefully the city will consider this option.

If nothing else, your group’s research confirms that the city’s plan to install traffic cameras is just another example of the tail wagging the dog.  Considering that the issue is best addressed through traffic engineering rather than enforcement, any solution that circumvents the engineering department is likely to be one that will short circuit in time.

As someone who also invested considerable time fighting the city, I applaud your efforts.  Thank you.

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David Onkels

Nov 21, 2011

Larry,
Gosh, You’re so smart.
You failed, I notice to post anything from a third party to support your assertions. (Not even Eben Fodor!)

This is an example: “Because the authors of this article referenced the FAST report, and because the FAST report identified the recession and lack of growth as the cause of the city’s financial problems, growth became fair game.”

You can do better than that, I’m sure.

You wrote, “The city’s financial structure is a Ponzi scheme built on infinite growth.  Of course it will fail during recessionary periods.  It’s not up for debate, and I will not debate it with you.”

Suit yourself.

I think that it is a Ponzi scheme built on the death of growth.
If you don’t want to debate, don’t respond.
I think your arguments are unsupportable and ridiculous.

Then you wrote, “Sorry, David, I have seen others get sucked into the black hole which is your desperate need for debate.  I’ve got much better things to do.”

Larry, I can assure you that I have no “desperate need to debate”, especially with you, given your condescension toward those with whom you disagree.

The rest of your post is unsupportable, and incoherent, in my opinion, for that matter.

The City is required by 36.70A to plan for growth.

Do you disagree with that?

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David Onkels

Nov 21, 2011

Larry,
You wrote, “If Eben Fodor is “so twentieth century,” the false belief that more growth will solve the problems created by prior growth is pre-historic.  Get real.  If you’re so fond of growth, the burden is on you to prove it’s truly beneficial.  Fodor has already proven it’s not.”

Actually, to be accurate, Fodor has argued that it’s not, and there is plenty of evidence to the contrary. The bar for proof is pretty high.

I don’t care to even argue that it’s beneficial, only that planning for it is required by GMA. There’s a difference, isn’t there? Do you disagree?

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Christy Nieto

Nov 22, 2011

To Craig who wrote “I did not pay much attention to the specifics of the Bellingham mayor race.  Where is Linville on this issue?  Did she ever come out with a clear statement or did she avoid it so Pike took all of the heat?”

Kelli not only signed the initiative early on, she apparently advised some of the council members that there was some legislation at the state level regarding banning red light cams (9 states have banned already). The chair of the Transportation Committee refused to hear the bill so it died in Olympia. I would not be surprised if the issue reappears in the next year, considering all of the cities currently dealing with camera-related litigation.

At the mayoral debates that I attended Kelli stated that she felt the contract was signed prematurely and that she didn’t think the camera technology was the appropriate solution.

The Bellingham Herald recently released the names of all initiative signers after it was obtained via public disclosure request. I would not normally go around telling people which public official signed it and which didn’t but at this point the names have been made public.

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Ryan M. Ferris

Nov 22, 2011

Thanks for providing access to the FAST report (“Fiscal Alternatives for Stability Taskforce”). If there is a matching document from a commission on creating new income and jobs in Bellingham, I would be interested in reading that as well.

Did I miss something or did COB just increase that property tax levy to 1.63% last night?

http://www.cob.org/documents/finance/presentations/2012-revenue-forecast-presentation.pdf
http://www.cob.org/web/COUNCIL.nsf/0/0C45F103F79319C08825794B005C89CB/$File/21nov2011_AB19331.pdf?OpenElement

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Randy Elmore

Nov 22, 2011

There is still a signed contract on the table between ATS and the city.The city council and the mayor have brought this oily partner into our lives and we, the citizens have to find a way to end that relationship.
Yes, the people have spoken through the ballot box, but the contract obligates us to at least a one year “pilot” program (read that as “we got our foot in the door, the general fund will get accustomed to the money, American Traffic Solutions will benefit and want to stay, so B’ham will never get rid of the cameras”). If Greg Kirsch has an idea for an exit strategy, I would love to see it sitting on the table next to the contract. Please put it out there, Greg.
And how will the city measure success at the end of the one year pilot? By the number of tickets generated? The amount of revenue increase? City traffic engineers needs to do a comprehensive study using collision and traffic movement data from the proposed intersection to determine a baseline BEFORE any cameras go in in the “pilot”.

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Larry Horowitz

Nov 22, 2011

Not to steal Greg’s thunder, but his strategy involves Section 12.2 of the ATS contract (link below), which states:

“The City may terminate this Contract in the event that state or local legislation, state or local initiative, state or local referendum, or a decision by a court of competent jurisdiction prohibits the enforcement of Violations using image-capture technology or in any way effects the terms of this agreement…” 

Note that Section 12.2 allows ATS to petition the court to determine the legality of any legislation, initiative, or referendum BEFORE the City may terminate the Agreement.  ATS has already used this power to defeat the initiative.

As I understand it, Greg’s strategy is for the city to adopt legislation that “prohibits the enforcement of Violations using image-capture technology,” thereby satisfying the termination clause of the contract.

Link to ATS contract (refer to Section 12.2 on page 11 of the contract, pg 12 of the pdf):

[www.cob.org/cob/Contracts.nsf/%28$All%29/177C9146819F955988257888005E174F/$File/20110224.pdf?OpenElement]

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Paul deArmond

Nov 24, 2011

The recent article in the TNT about the Tacoma Council turning first to red light cameras as the #1 source of increased revenue pretty shows how they view the cameras as primarily a revenue source.

http://blog.thenewstribune.com/politics/2011/11/22/tacoma-council-weighs-revenue-options-to-off-set-city-layoffs/

The numbers are interesting:  if bumping the fines up $23 to $124 yields over $419,000, then Tacoma is already addicted to over $1.8 million a year from the cameras.

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Ken Whitley

Nov 24, 2011

A couple of thoughts.

If they are serious about “it’s not about revenue” then they can show this by issuing citations other than cash fines.  Simple enough.  If it’s serious enough to be paying this kind of money and subjecting people to this kind of surveillance, it had better be life-threatening criminal activity, right?

We can also check that the yellow light on an intersection with a traffic cam is a reasonable length.  For all of Bellingham that allows 35mph, a workable standard is safe braking for a fully loaded semi, since they drive everywhere.  If a truck can’t safely stop for the light, then there’s something wrong with the light, and they have no business issuing tickets over it.

Another important item is the destination of the revenue, which can be directed away from any departments that can profit from tweaking the system.  Yes, that means the police, the prosecutors, and the administrators should NOT profit from any revenue brought in.  In fact, the costs and benefits should be arranged so that it is in the interest of police and prosecutors, as well as traffic planners, to get the law enforced with the fewest number of penalties, not the largest.

I also found the page of British comment on revenue-generating traffic cameras at http://www.speedcam.co.uk/gatso2.htm to be eloquent and compelling (do note that when you get to the bottom, there’s more pages).  But then, I like poetry.

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James Walker

Nov 26, 2011

The Transportation Safety Coalition is correct, red light cameras are about revenue, not safety.  Red light cameras only produce any significant amount of revenue when: 1) yellow intervals are too short for the ACTUAL approach speeds of at least 85% of the vehicles and/or 2) cameras target safe slow rolling right on red turns.  If the yellows are set long enough, cameras will not record enough straight through violations to pay their installation and operational costs.  Right on red turns, from a stop or from a slow roll, account for only a tiny fraction of one percent of all fatalities.

In short, red light cameras can only work financially when most of the tickets are given to very safe drivers who present virtually no risks to themselves or other road users.  The entire industry is based on deliberately improper engineering and/or predatory ticketing of safe drivers. The PIRG report shows how the contracts with ticket companies are written to favor revenue over safety.

And red light cameras often raise the total accident rates.

In the defense of red light cameras, some city engineers will say “we time the yellow intervals for the posted speed limits”.  This is code for “we time the yellows too short by first setting the speed limits lower than the safety-optimum 85th percentile speed of free flowing traffic under good conditions - the method that almost always produces the smoothest traffic flow and the highest safety”, so we use deliberately bad engineering in two of the major traffic safety procedures in order to raise ticket revenue.

Camera companies often provide “data” to show that cameras produce fewer violations and greater safety, but please first ask where the data comes from.  Be sure it is not from companies or groups that have a financial conflict of interest in ticket cameras or the tickets that are issued.  This makes data very questionable from groups like the IIHS, and obviously data from the camera companies is very suspect for bias.

Go to our website to see some of the unbiased research from groups that have no financial conflicts of interest in ticket cameras.  Look at the data from cities that lengthened their yellows by 0.7 to 1.0 seconds and got 50% to 90% reductions in violations.  Look at the studies which show increased total accident rates at camera sites, including some studies that show more injury accidents as well.  See the engineering experts describe longer yellows as THE most effective way to reduce red light violations.

Go to http://www.thenewspaper.com and see the lists and articles for cities that allowed their citizens to vote on cameras.  The only place cameras survived a vote was East Cleveland, and then only when the city sent uniformed officers in patrol cars to go house to house telling voters they needed to keep the cameras in place to prevent the city from firing 36 police officers, 14 firefighters, and at least 10 other workers.  East Cleveland had become so addicted to the ticket revenue that they had to blackmail their citizens to vote to keep the cameras.  This is corruption.

As to dealing with the “pilot” program without the city getting addicted to the revenue - that is easy.  Simply add 1.0 seconds of yellow to all the lights (but not to exceed the federal maximum of 6.0 seconds).  If violations are still too high, add another 0.5 seconds of yellow.  Then pass a city ordinance that slow rolling right on red turns are not an offense in your traffic code, so long as that turn did not endanger another road user or pedestrian. These two moves will drop the violation and ticket rate so low that ATS will be the one asking to end the contract immediately.

Once the cameras are gone, direct the engineers to review the posted speed limits and set almost all main road limits at the 85th percentile speed of free flowing traffic under good conditions. This will likely raise most posted limits by 5 or 10 mph.  NOTE that actual travel speeds will not change by more than about 1 mph in most cases, but the flow will be smoother and safer.  Then time the yellows to those actual 85th percentile approach speeds.  You will then have a town free of predatory camera enforcement AND smoother and safer traffic flow overall.

James C. Walker, National Motorists Association, http://www.motorists.org, Ann Arbor, MI

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Dick Conoboy

Nov 27, 2011

This discussion seems to have devolved into one about red-light cameras only.  After reading all the comments, I too have come to question their safety and utility.  That being said, the school zone cameras seem to have become a poor orphan that has been left out in the cold.  Moreover, nobody has answered the question about the real meaning of the vote on the initiative which actually had four components, as I indicated in my comment above from 21 November to wit:  “The promoters were asking for agreement on four different issues in the same initiative, which pushed me to vote against it in its entirety.  One aspect was to remove any camera installed under the 2010 agreement.  Second, was to require city council approval of any such cameras in the future.  Third was to require voter re-affirmation of any city council approval of such cameras.  And fourth was a limitation on the fine as a result of a camera produced infraction. “  How does one vote yes or no on an initiative with so many combinations of elements?  Also embedded in the initiative was a lack of choice about red-light cameras and school zone cameras. Speed cameras are an altogether different animal and have been shown to be effective in reducing deaths and injuries depending on their locations.  Even if the objective is just to get folks to slow down in a school zones (notwithstanding the absence a history in Bellingham of injured children), that may be a topic worthy of further exploration.

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Randy Elmore

Nov 27, 2011

Neither the city of Bellingham nor American Traffic Solutions have been honest brokers in this multi-year effort by the mayor and city council to bring red light cameras into our town. While the Transportation Safety Coalition did get a measure on the November ballot advising city government not to install red light cameras, and the initiative past with 68% opposed to the cameras, the city council has been decidedly mum since election day.

Citizens of this town and the county people who do their business here have spent the last year in the dark regarding what has been going on between our public servants and the camera company. It was only though the Public Records Request Act that we found out anything. We’re surprised that since the election, local government hasn’t been more forthcoming. Openness and transparency are important to reestablishing trust.

We say to the council, “keep us in the loop”. Folks want to know what’s going on. What is the state of the contract and what are your intentions, council? Citizens must keep strong, gentle pressure on their elected representatives.

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Christy Nieto

Nov 28, 2011

Mr. Conoboy,

While the comments under the article may be more about red-light cameras than speed cameras, our year long research was not. We have been given no evidence that would conclude us to believe there is a crash history that would be fixed with speed cameras in school zones.

We do not see speed cameras reducing collisions there, nor do any of the 115 pages of emails imply there was any real concern for our children in school zones. The fact that the City and ATS discussed installing the speed cameras on busy streets for income furthers our point: “The income issue really relates to the numbers of intersection violations, and schools on busy streets…; which create the most significant numbers.”

Bottom line, we think it’s hard to not be disgusted with this privatization of law enforcement/for-profit model being brought into Bellingham. No part of this project works for us, unless there is a complete redo of the analysis and thorough public discussion.

Further more, we would suggest that there are better alternatives to cameras, like radar/speed signs, that transmit drivers’ speeds onto a neon sign in the school zone – at eye-level – so that a drivers attention is above the dash, rather than staring at their speedometers as they nervously drive through a school zone. Mt. Vernon uses these at each of their schools and the city’s Public Works department raves about them - and they are fairly inexpensive (5K each to purchase vs. the red light cam price of $4,700 per month each to lease). Just north in Vancouver, B.C. there are speed bumps at all schools (public and private), making it virtually impossible to speed. We want drivers driving at the speed limit - but watching out for our children should be their priority - not looking down below the dashboard. Just like red-light cameras, we believe that installing automated ticket machines where there’s not a collision history may increase the risk of collisions.

The discussion of school zone safety needs to begin and end with the safety of our children. Take the money (and ATS) out of the equation. We doubt that when the safety of our children is truly put first, that for-profit speed cameras will be part of the solution.

As far as the initiative language, if it had to be done over again, I agree that it could have been written differently. Hindsight is 20/20. However, almost 70 percent of voters thought it worked for them. I disagree with you when you say we were asking voters for agreement on four different issues - I see them all as being part of the same issue. I’m sorry we did not have your vote. Having said all that, it’s too bad it was necessary at all.

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Dick Conoboy

Nov 29, 2011

Christy,

Thanks for the detailed reply. To reiterate, I was never for the privatization effort.  Public safety and policing are government functions.  You lost my vote because the initiative was not clear, purely and simply.  That 70% of the voters seemed to have no problem with the wording makes me more concerned - about the electorate.  Did most even read it?  Or was the vote a knee-jerk reaction to overall publicity?

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Mike Rostron

Nov 29, 2011

It is amazing how we sometimes resort to complicated and expensive efforts when often the low-tech and cheaper fix works better.  Speed bumps absolutely work.  They have brought speeds way down in the Sunnyland neighborhood on Grant Street.  They absolutely should be used in school zones everywhere, and if the city ever gets around to reducing the speeds on Alabama to a sane and safer 25 mph I’d love to see speed bumps on Alabama Hill.  They are irritating but they work well as not-so gentle-reminders to oblivious and incautious motorists.  The bumps (or humps as they are called in some jurisdictions) are also very good at smacking cell phones into inattentive driver’s ears.

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Christy Nieto

Nov 29, 2011

Mike, I agree. The problem is that speed bumps and other low tech solutions don’t make hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars for municipalities. If safety were truly the main goal this would be a no-brainer. Tonight Jack Weiss said to the Birchwood Neighborhood Association that the city would be moving forward with the cameras starting in 6-8 weeks. Has a formal city announcement not been made because the council is hoping the public won’t notice or is the council embarrassed at what its actions have led to - cowering to the litigious profiteering company that is ATS?

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