Winton is set to receive a long-awaited CCTV camera upgrade after years of public disagreement around privacy and funding. The Southland town has confirmed plans to install more powerful surveillance cameras to help reduce crime and improve safety.
Police in Winton welcomed the move. Senior Sergeant Peter Graham said, “Police are elated the Winton community board have renewed CCTV public safety cameras.” He added that the old cameras had been “invaluable” but were no longer fit for purpose.
The $65,000 plan includes replacing four outdated cameras and installing a new one overlooking the local playground and skate park. The plan will be presented to Southland District Council for final approval next week.
The camera issue has been contentious in Winton for some time. Cattery owner Dave Diack, who served on the previous Oreti Community Board, said the group had initially blocked the upgrade. “The cameras were never declined in the sense that we voted, 'No, we don't want the cameras’,” he explained. “All we wanted was to have the proper privacy arrangements in place for people and to get some certainty around costs.”
In the past year, a working group provided more information on costs and privacy, and a new privacy agreement between the council and police was drawn up. Diack said, “If I was on that board now and we had got it over the line, I would be out there singing from the rooftops.”
The new community board chair, Margie Ruddenklau, believes the deal sets a strong example. “There was a lot of work that went in behind it. It was a complete update of the agreement… in regard to the information that the CCTV cameras provide around privacy.”
Last month, the public was excluded from a board meeting discussing the camera upgrade, and the public will also be excluded from the district council meeting next week, due to commercial reasons. Diack hoped that privacy and cost considerations would remain a priority, saying, “I'm hopeful that the town has got an acceptable outcome, not only in terms of price... but also in terms of acknowledging that privacy is an issue.”
Winton Business Association president Daphne Fairbairn called the decision a “massive relief” and said the upgrade had taken too long due to politics and outdated privacy agreements. “Commonsense has prevailed, thank goodness,” she said.
Fairbairn said businesses were supportive, even if it meant some cost impact on rates. “It’s better to be safe.”
Similar CCTV projects across the country have faced issues over funding and monitoring. In Featherston, a community group is struggling with ongoing fees, while on the Hibiscus Coast a patrol group pulled out over similar concerns. In contrast, Horowhenua is seen as a model, using volunteers to monitor cameras from a Levin police station. Their footage has played a key role in recent policing.