- Published:
- Tuesday 13 October 2015
Anti-social behaviour in Melbourne’s popular Fitzroy St in St Kilda will now be caught on CCTV cameras under an Andrews Labor Government plan to bring more shoppers and families back to the strip.
A community crime prevention grant will help pay for 10 high-definition CCTV cameras along the street to help residents and visitors feel safer.
The project will install the cameras along key points of the street from mid-2016 as part of a bigger plan to revitalise the popular tourist drawcard.
The CCTV cameras come after a previous crime prevention grant helped pay for extra lighting and streetscape upgrades, including new paving, seating, landscaping and tree planting.
The cost of the new state-of-the-art CCTV system, which will swivel and zoom to zero in on antisocial activity up and down the street rather than concentrate on any one spot, is estimated at more than $400,000, with the Labor Government contributing $246,250.
CCTV footage can be streamed to the local station, where police can actively monitor and control the cameras or retrospectively watch the footage. The council will evaluate the effectiveness of the cameras over the next two years.
The CCTV project is one of 14 Public Safety Infrastructure Grants sharing in $2.5 million to give councils money to improve public safety and security.
The Public Safety Infrastructure Fund is part of the Government’s $5.8 million investment in community crime prevention, which works to tackle crime and its root causes.
Quotes attributable to Parliamentary Secretary for Justice Ben Carroll
“CCTV can help prevent crime as part of several measures to make our communities safer.”
“Crime prevention is not only about reducing anti-social behaviour, it is also about helping residents and traders build a better community.”
Quotes attributable to Member for Albert Park Martin Foley
“Fitzroy St is a part of the iconic stretch of St Kilda that includes the Palais and Acland St. I am pleased to support this move, which will help bring more life, colour and visitors back to Fitzroy St, as well as boost business for local traders.”