License Plate Readers in Montecito and More
The Montecito Association March 2025 meeting was held in person at the Montecito Library community room and on Zoom, Tuesday, March 11.
MA President Doug Black with1st VP Leslie Lundgren called the meeting to order and moderated the presentations. The key agenda item was the presentation by FLOCK representative Brooke Midgett, via Zoom. Flock makes a License Plate Reader. Brooke’s data points:
-There are FLOCK license plate reader (LPR) cameras and video cameras. LPR reads the license plate and uses AI to identify the make and model of the vehicle. The video cameras are not good at reading license plates but can track other pertinent data for law enforcement.
-There is an initial install fee and 24-month contract. After that, the contract just renews.
-Costs are presently $2,500 per camera with a one-time install fee of $650
-Cameras are solar powered or DC
-Contract includes software and hardware updates, Hotlist integration wand Alerts, Cloud hosting and LTE (wireless) connectivity, plus maintenance.
-The community decides what law enforcement agencies get the data in real time
-Data is stored on a rotating 30-day cycle and then wiped out. Selected data can be stored in the cloud.
-Placement of the cameras on public utility poles and public land is preferred
-Real time alerts are sent to law enforcement
-Data becomes part of a national registry Hotlist
-At night the cameras use infrared technology
-FLOCK provides objective evidence, investigative leads, and intercepts threats by working with law enforcement teams.
-FLOCK has ethics driven technology for data collection to protects residents without infringing on privacy
Midgett suggested that Montecito have an inbound LPR paired with an outbound LPR and a video camera at each entry/exit point to Montecito.
MA board member Bill Babbitt said that Brentwood is using Motorola cameras. Brittingham replied with, “FLOCK is better than Motorola on a number of levels, the main one being that all neighboring law enforcement agencies use FLOCK and it would be best to connect Montecito. FLOCK is not only for these targeted crime gangs but also useful on a number of levels including missing persons, stolen vehicles, bank robberies, etc.” MA Board of Directors Jillian Wittman added that there are 11 entrance/exit points in Montecito, so the town will need at least 22 cameras.
Other reports at the meeting were:
MA Board member Bill Babbitt alerted the MA that, “There is a new senate bill by Senator Scott Wiener, SB79, which increases the density of an area by allowing multi-family housing units on all parcels throughout the state; ‘SB 79 will make it faster and easier to build multi-family housing near transit stops, like train and rapid bus lines, by making it legal for more homes to be built in these areas and streamlining existing permit review processes.’ Thiswould decimate west Los Angeles and all of Montecito, taking away zoning rights. SB9 is regarding lot splits and SB10 is about increasing housing density in areas near transit and job centers – 10 units on single family lots.” MA PresidentBlack added he was on a committee to stop SB9 and SB10 but failed. Concern was expressed.
The MA Safety subcommittee was reported on by Jillian Wittman and Andrea Newquist. There was a large discussion about the location for a Sheriff’s department satellite office in Montecito and the difficulty of finding the proper location. They will continue to meet to resolve.
Montecito Fire Dept Chief David Neels stated that, “There are extra first responders on duty during any storm event, as it is difficult to predict the rainfall. MFD is happy – after asking for years – to have a partnership regarding Red Flag Warnings, as we were asked to join SBC Supervisor Roy Lee last Tuesday at the SBC Board of Supervisors meeting to help support the Red Flag Restricted Parking Program Initiative.”
Sheriff Lt. Rich Brittingham reported on the pattern of the South American crime gangs, saying, “They are now spreading through Summerland. The gangs are two weeks on and then off, during which they are likely doing surveying. Target location is Birnam Wood.” Lt. Brittingham then pivoted to the Red Flag Warning parking controversy.
“We received a $25,000 award from the SBC Board of Supervisors in order to have more deputies patrolling during Red Flag Warnings. Our deputies go to the Hot Springs area and issue parking citations between sunset and sunrise daily. We are prepared to work with MFD for any disturbances.”
GM Montecito Sanitation District John Weigold reported that the manhole project is delayed till April 2025, and their contractor will go door-to-door to residents whose properties have manholes. He reminded residents to not connect their gutters to the waste lines, “We don’t want more water from gutters in our lines and plant because we have to add more chemicals, and deal with increasing volume, adding to costs.” He added the MSD will restart education tours of the MSD for local schools and residents.
GM Montecito Water District Nick Turner updated on the Groundwater Sustainability Team formed in 2020. Their Plan, submitted May 2023, was approved last week with few changes, and they can begin the work. Turner reported, “Currently, the water supply from normal rain at this time of year is 50%, and if it continues to be lower the SBC will say we are in a drought. In January 2025 we were awarded the funding for the $35 million project for construction to retrofit all the reservoirs to get them up to seismic code. The State of California did an Urban Water Use Regulation Survey using aerial data, not historical data, so it is scientific. They sent their reports to all the local water districts in the state as a point of information for how much water each property should be using. Montecito residents will get that in their April bill, stating the target baseline of water your property needs.”
Superintendent/Principal of Cold Spring School Amy Alzina, reported, “The school has 198 students, 10 new families from L.A. fires, the largest number of students we have had. There are 16 TK students, 29 K students. We are at capacity for our district. We will apply for more instructors. We did a seminar on AI prompts and Gamma AI presentation tools, so how to turn a pdf into a podcast, edit it and share via link. Notebook LM is my favorite tool, and now it’s interactive. Thank you to Paul Orfalea for his support.”
SuperintendentofMontecito Union School District Anthony Ranii reported, “We are at 397 students, with 45 students from L.A. fires. We initially added 50 students, but some went back to L.A. We put in for two new teachers for next year. Our school counselor is busy with the kids and parents. Parents felt very welcome here. We are receiving a grant from the Montecito Community Foundation to redo an area of our property and hillside to make it safer and more beautiful. March 24th we will put our MUS fences up to six feet. Lt Brittingham last week walked the MUS campus with me and made suggestions for changes we can make. We are now hiring for a Music and PE teacher.”
Aida Thau – staff from SBC 1st District Supervisor Roy Lee’s office – reported that their priority is to continue to support the needs of the Montecito community.
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