Mayor's office affirms control of ALPR and camera data
The mayor’s office in Kingston is insisting that data from the city’s recently acquired automatic licence plate readers (ALPRs) and surveillance cameras is owned and controlled exclusively by the municipality, after a council member raised questions about whether the vendor could access user information.
Summer Smith, the city’s director of communications and community engagement, told reporters that Motorola Solutions, the company that supplied the camera and ALPR system, has data sharing turned off "by default." Smith supplied a Motorola brochure in which the firm asserts that agencies "retain 100% ownership and control of their licence plate reader data" and that the company "never pools, networks or independently shares it."
- Vendor: Motorola Solutions
- Data retention (ALPR): 14 to 21 days, then automatically overwritten
- Data ownership: City of Kingston, per municipal statement
Police Chief Egidio Tinti told members of the Common Council Public Safety Committee on Aug. 26 that ALPR data are kept on a short rotation and are automatically written over because of storage limitations. The short retention window was cited by officials to address concerns about long-term surveillance and potential data sharing.
Councillor calls for contract termination and disposal of armoured vehicle
The defence of the data policy came shortly after D-Ward 2 councillor Michael Tierney publicly urged the city to end its contract with Motorola and to dispose of an armoured vehicle in the Kingston Police fleet — language he used when referring to the vehicle as "a tank" and called the cameras and vehicle "toys."
"The data belongs to, and can only be accessed by, Kingston unless we share it," Smith said.
Tierney framed his proposal as a way to offset new municipal expenses resulting from a recent four-year contract with the Kingston Police Benevolent Association. Under that agreement, officers receive a yearly 3.75% raise, while contributing an additional $500 annually toward health insurance.
| Item | Impact |
|---|---|
| Police annual raise | 3.75% per year |
| Employee health contribution increase | $500 more per officer per year |
| Estimated city cost next year | $711,000 additional expense |
| Projected tax levy impact | 3.131% increase each year |
City Comptroller John Tuey provided council members with estimates that the wage increases will amount to roughly $711,000 in additional city spending next year. Council members said the new contract, retroactive to Jan. 1, 2026 and running through the end of 2029, will also produce a compounded effect on the city’s tax levy.
Where the debate goes from here
It was not immediately clear whether Tierney intends to introduce formal legislation to cancel the Motorola contract or to order disposal of the armoured vehicle. The dispute highlights competing municipal priorities: public safety tools and equipment on one hand, and fiscal pressures on the other as the city absorbs negotiated labour costs.
Those tensions are familiar to Kingston residents who see different demands between urban services and suburban or rural expectations for policing and municipal spending. A debate over surveillance technology adds privacy and civil liberties into that mix, prompting council and staff to clarify technical controls, retention schedules and ownership of data.
For now, city staff have pointed to vendor commitments and short retention windows to reassure the public. Officials and councillors will likely face follow-up questions at upcoming council and committee meetings if motions to alter contracts or dispose of equipment are tabled.
The matter remains under discussion at City Hall as officials weigh operational needs, public confidence and the cost implications tied to recently ratified police wages.
