Laserfiche WebLink
2.02: Video Camera and Server Upgrades for Police Squads and Municipal Center with <br />an Update of Proposed Capital Equipment Purchases for Budget Years 2015 -2017 <br />City Administrator Kurds Ulrich gave an overview of the capital plan and reviewed how the <br />proposed purchases would fit into capital funding. <br />Finance Director Diana Lund reviewed the financial implications and the impact the equipment <br />purchase would have on the budget. She reviewed the funding choices as outlined in the staff <br />report. <br />Police Chief James Way reviewed the staff report and need for video camera and server upgrades <br />for police squads and the Municipal Center. He reminded the Council that he is also considering <br />the purchase of lights for the parking ramp for the Residence. He noted there are currently four <br />servers capturing and storing information, however one server is not operational and another is <br />almost full. <br />Len Wilson, Area Sales Manager for Visual Pro 360, stated he has been working with the City of <br />Ramsey on technology since 2006. He gave an overview of the events since that time. He <br />explained the new system would replace all the current servers. The new system would be able <br />to manage all the information with one application that could be shared. The Visual Pro 360 <br />would reduce the need for staff to manage multiple systems, thereby conserving time and <br />finances. <br />Police Chief Way noted the server that is no longer operational cannot be repaired. It is not <br />worth it to upgrade it and keep it running, as other parts would be needed in time to keep it <br />running. He stated the server needs to be replaced. <br />IT Manager Frederickson pointed out the Honeywell server has been in since the building was <br />built in 2006. It is now outdated and the motherboard went down. The server would need to be <br />rebuilt entirely. He explained the cost to replace it would be approximately $20,000. He further <br />explained that cost is for one component and other pieces would still need to be upgraded. <br />Councilmember Kuzma noted that having a server down is a liability for the city. He questioned <br />how much time is spent responding to requests for video. <br />Police Chief Way stated while the ability to have audio and video has reduced court time and has <br />been helpful for litigation, it does take time to go through the process to download and copy the <br />information to the servers. There is a fair amount of requests for video and audio. He said the <br />new system would work with cameras and microphones if the officers wore them. <br />Mr. Wilson reviewed information in the staff report stating there would be no blind spots around <br />the squad cars. The cameras would have the availability to stream live from the scene. He said <br />the lifespan of the videos themselves as well as the equipment would be 5 to 10 years. When an <br />upgrade is needed, the equipment could be re- purposed for the fire department to use in <br />trainings, for example. Mr. Wilson noted trainers would be on site for four days to install the <br />City Council Work Session / May 27, 2014 <br />Page 2 of 4 <br />