La Loma residents must wait a little longer for security cameras in parks

The La Loma Neighborhood Association must wait one more month on its plan to place security cameras in public parks.

City Councilman Will O'Bryant held up the proposal Monday night, raising questions about whether the city would be taking on too much risk in allowing private security guards to work on public property.

He referred to a worst-case scenario in which one of the La Loma guards injures someone or gets hurt in one of the parks. That scenario likely would lead to a lawsuit that could entangle the city, O'Bryant said.

"Things happen out there that are crazy," said O'Bryant, a retired Alameda County sheriff's detective. "I find it's much easier to defend someone who's gone through the academy and has years of training and experience than someone who's security personnel."

The neighborhood group wants to bolster its security contract with Al's Certified Alarms of Salida. The company has patrolled the neighborhood since October, contributing to about 30 arrests since then, owner Allen Woods said.

O'Bryant and Councilwoman Kristin Olsen set a course for a compromise that would allow the security company to monitor the cameras but prohibit its guards from confronting anyone in the parks.

Instead, the company could watch the cameras and tip off police to suspicious activity.

O'Bryant and Olsen want a new draft of the proposal to return to the council's Safety and Communities Committee next month. From there, it could move to a council meeting for a final vote.

The La Loma Neighborhood Association has a reputation as the city's most assertive Neighborhood Watch group. It wants the cameras because its members believe the parks provide an after-hours haven for burglars and other suspected criminals.

"We see these guys drop in the parks at 3 a.m. and they wave at us," said Woods, a La Loma resident.

City Attorney Susana Alcala Wood said the agreement already shifted liability to the La Loma group. In O'Bryant's worst-case scenario, for example, Wood said the neighborhood association would have to pay for the city's legal defense.

The agreement had a number of other benefits for the city. It would have required Woods' employees to close park restrooms in the La Loma area, a task currently performed by city workers.

Other city officials have said the cameras would cut park vandalism. Modesto lost $58,000 to metal thieves in La Loma parks last year.

"This is unique, and a pretty special arrangement between the city and a neighborhood association," said Parks, Recreation and Neighborhoods Director Jim Niskanen.

Bee staff writer Adam Ashton can be reached at aashton@modbee.com or 578-2366.