Farmingdale installs new cameras, license plate readers

By Madison Dominicci 

NEW YORK - Are you ready for Farmingdale to know what you drive? When you drive? How long you have visited the town of Main Street for? If so, you will be happy to know that license plate readers and cameras will be coming to Farmingdale. The cameras and license plate readers will be installed in a hidden spot right by the lamp posts in the Farmingdale village. There has been some controversy online, especially Facebook, Farmingdale residents have had some mixed opinions about this installation. 

When I did my interview with a Farmingdale resident, he was unaware of the installation. Some of the residents were not asked about their opinions on the installation. I asked Rob Mallamo the question, how do you feel about surveillance cameras being installed on Main Street? Rob responded with “I’ll be honest, I had no idea about this until I read the article, and it makes me feel very uncomfortable about surveillance cameras on Main Street. I feel like they shouldn’t be there.” If this wasn’t enough of a surprise for people, you are going to like my follow up question. I then asked do you think the cameras would make Farmingdale feel safer, or would you feel more watched on Farmingdale in Main Street? Rob responded “I would definitely lean towards feeling more watched. I feel like the level of safety on Main Street isn’t going to change whether there’s surveillance cameras or not because a lot of places already have cameras. It just means that the town is like watching us now, makes me feel uncomfortable.”  

Some people are for the idea of the camera and license plate reader installation. People think it will make the town safer and that this seems to be a normal thing across Long Island. According to the article “What New York Municipalities Should Know About License Plate Camera Risks” written by Mindy L. Zoghlin, mentions how these cameras are being used in New York City as well. This installation is not a new thing for many towns. These cameras are used to help with public safety and for following the laws. For instance, “These systems, which use cameras and software to capture and analyze license plate data, offer significant benefitssuch as aiding in criminal investigations and locating missing persons.” When doing an interview with a New York Police Officer and Farmingdale Volunteer Firefighter named Steven Tarricone. When asked the question from your experience are there similar systems you have seen in other towns that would help reduce crime or improve the safety of Farmingdale? Steven responded with “Yes, in New York City, there’s license plate readers everywhere, and I can attest that it does work. Just last week, I recovered a stolen moped off of a license plate reader hit. So yes, they definitely work, and it would be beneficial to the Farmingdale community for license plate readers.” 

Adding these cameras and license plate readers can make the residents of Farmingdale feel safe especially when people go out a lot on Main Street to the bars and restaurants, it can get very chaotic. Both the cameras and license plate readers can help customers to not be reckless and act responsibly, especially when it comes to drinking and driving. During my interview with Farmingdale hair salon owner  Angela Souza, I asked do you think Farmingdale needs this type of technology? Or do you feel like Farmingdale is already a safe community, and we don’t really need it? Angela responded with “Yes, I feel like it needs it, because of the younger crowd and even some of the older, with the bars and the restaurant scene being that a lot of the businesses on Main Street are open very late at night, it’s a good idea.” When I then asked the question, are you concerned about who will have access to the footage of these cameras and the driver license plate readers? Angela responded “Yes and no when more information is out, to see what they would do about if anybody hacks the system. So that I would think about.” Angela’s concern about the hacking and privacy from the cameras and license plate readers isn’t something new. In the article “What Are Automated License Plate Readers and Why Are People Worried?” written by Jack Fitzgerald, a lot of people are concerned about what people will do with the data being collected.

Farmingdale residents have mixed feelings. Only time will tell how the Farmingdale residents ultimately feel about the cameras and license plate readers coming. Some people see these installations as a good thing while others may see it as a bad thing. People may feel they are being watched more by the town of Farmingdale than seeing it as a safety precaution.