By ALEXANDER SIMONE

Staff writer

Peabody residents need to take measures to combat overlooked crime, resident Kirshawn Stevens said at Monday’s city council meeting.

“When it comes to things around town, some of it goes unmonitored,” he said. “On behalf of public safety and everything like that, as a community, we need to come together and raise a fund to better secure us as a population.”

The community could invest in a set of security cameras for $52 each, said Stevens, who moved to Peabody recently.

“A good start for this would be to invest in cameras for the city or police station that could help monitor to looks at the more unseen crimes, and hopefully crack down on it,” he said. “Being here less than a month, my grandfather and I have seen two, most likely methamphetamine needles, just lying in the road.”

Looking deeper into the possibility of camera surveillance is a good option for the city to consider, councilman Jay Gfeller said.

“It’s an interesting idea and a topic for discussion,” he said. “Obviously, it’s one that would need a lot more in depth research to work out all the logistical things.”

Stevens said when he lived in New Mexico his community used cameras to significantly decrease crime rates along Main St.

“In order to crack down on it, I think it would be a healthy investment for the town,” he said.

The cameras Stevens proposed ping signals off one another to negate the need for Wi-Fi access and create a mesh network, he said.

There is also flexibility in how frequently video needs reviewing since the cameras can be reset weekly, Stevens said.

There are limitations in range because a line of sight is usually needed for mesh networks, similar to the drawbacks of Marion County’s dispatch system, Gfeller said.

“The radio signals that come out of Marion and operate our 800 system all have to have a line of sight, and we have a very hard time getting coverage in a lot of rural areas within our county,” he said.

While no decision was made, councilman Lindsay Hutchison commended Stevens for be willing to show up and voice his concerns despite younger age.

“I’d like to thank you for bringing this to the council,” Lindsay Hutchison said. “Good job, and welcome to town.”

Hearts for Hart Park, Christmas lights committee member Hannah Bourbon requested a list of donors to reconcile 2019 financials and to send thank you cards to donors.

“I’ve caught errors in prior years,” she said. “I’d like to make sure all that information is reconciled.

By supplying the list, it could become public record, and there might be donors who don’t want their info released, Gfeller said.

Hutchison agreed that reconciling the reports was important in case individuals donated for certain causes.

The topic was tabled until next meeting.