Cameras keeping neighbourhood safer
Keen advocate Laney Ogle will organise further fundraisers to keep the Berryfield cameras maintained. Photo: Anne Hardie.
Security cameras are getting results in Berryfields and The Meadows, with more planned on the main walkway into the area to help keep the neighbourhood safe.
Mike Gill and Pat Lithgow got the initiative off the ground last year with funding from Tasman District Council’s Community Grant Scheme, Network Tasman Trust, three building companies and one of the developers. So far, Mike says, the neighbourhood has two cameras with number-plate recognition and three static cameras for security.
Next on the list is a couple of cameras on the walkway that follows Poutama Stream from Jubilee Park, including one to be erected by Club Waimea. He hopes another can be erected at the new intersection onto McShane Rd with number-plate recognition to cover all the entrances.
He says the cameras have already helped the police resolve three incidences in the neighbourhood and act as a deterrent to crime.
Though the cameras are directly linked to the Richmond Police Station, Mike says they are not monitored and only reviewed if an incident is reported and they need to check the footage.
“The cameras aren’t there to spy on people. They’re there for one purpose and if something happens, they can be used for evidence.
“They’re there for safety and are another way to make the neighbourhood safer.”
The cameras were initially mooted when building in the area was at its height and Mike says builders were getting gear stolen from the building sites.
Now, the focus is on creating a safe neighbourhood for those who live there.
Laney Ogle is a keen advocate for the cameras and requested cameras on the walkway beside Poutama Stream to make it safer and deter bullying to children.
She is now a signatory for the funds account and plans to hold fundraisers in the community to ensure the account has sufficient funds for repairs, maintenance and more cameras in the future.
“These cameras have worked and it’s helped. When something happens, the quicker it’s reported, the quicker the police can check any footage.”