FREEPORT – Thirty-two gas stations and retail shops that sell tobacco have installed video cameras in an effort to help police reduce crime. The surveillance camera initiative is among several public safety initiatives rolled out last year by Mayor Jim Gitz’s administration. Aldermen discussed progress that’s been made and remaining goals to tackle in the year ahead at a Committee of the Whole meeting Monday. The public safety plan aims to reduce crime by creating safer neighborhoods, promoting personal accountability, developing stronger community relationships, creating safe housing, fostering interdepartmental cooperation in distribution of city resources and making sound, data-driven decisions. Aldermen raised the majority of their questions Monday about the safer neighborhoods goal, which involves tobacco licensing, street lights and pole cameras and a K-9 program. The Police Department has implemented a program for licensing of tobacco merchants in order to hold them accountable for maintenance and operation of security cameras in their stores. "The program that we’re implementing does two things: it gives us a licensing framework in which we can say, ‘Look, this isn’t working. You need to fix it,’ the same way we do with liquor," Gitz said. "The second thing it does is give us – finally – a tool that we also can utilize for the surveillance cameras. Most of these stores, they don’t have good surveillance, which is a far bigger problem than who has what cigarettes." Deputy Police Chief Jim Drehoble has visited retail outlets throughout the city to ensure the video […]

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