ST. LOUIS — City officials said they are firmly against a pitch to fly drones over the Gravois Park neighborhood in what a private company bills as a crime-fighting push.
Maryland-based is planning beta testing in January for its drones in a two-week pilot project in the south ºüÀêÊÓƵ neighborhood.
The company director, Jomo Johnson, told the Post-Dispatch that a drone would fly about 200 feet in the air between 2 and 6 p.m. in a quarter-mile radius around the Gravois Park neighborhood.
He called it a deterrence program and said drone operators would be on the lookout for criminal activity and alert police to what they see.
But ºüÀêÊÓƵ Aldermanic President Megan Green likened the idea to “ill-conceived†spy planes.
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And Alderwoman Alisha Sonnier, whose ward includes most of Gravois Park, said the idea was “alarming.â€
Sonnier said that the company never contacted her, neighborhood leaders, any city officials or police about the plan.
“I’ve only heard opposition, not a single voice of support,†Sonnier said.
She said worries about residents being filmed without their consent.
“This has a potential to be very invasive and dangerous,†Sonnier said. “This is a danger of for-profit entities doing surveillance.â€
Some residents are circulating a against the idea, and the neighborhood association is expected to discuss the topic at its January meeting.
Johnson told a reporter Friday he plans to attend that meeting and that his company has been getting threats from people who oppose it.
But Johnson said his company would contact residents two weeks before the start of the project in January, handing out postcards with QR codes so residents can watch live footage of what the drone sees.
He said he hoped the project would bring his company some “awareness and some buzz, honestly.†He said he wants to do the same thing in Memphis and Los Angeles.
“We respect the city and police and have a desire to provide an extra layer of security,†Johnson said.
His goal is to get a contract with a municipality or a neighborhood association or a private group to supply drone coverage. His company would charge anywhere from $60 to $150 an hour, depending on the time of day and type of drone flown. Costs are weighted, similar to a ride-sharing service.
The ºüÀêÊÓƵ Police Department declined to comment on the proposal.