Memorandum                    

City of Lawrence

City Manager’s Office

TO:	City Commission
FROM:	Diane Stoddard, Interim City Manager
DATE:	February 11, 2016
CC:	Casey Toomay, Assistant City Manager
RE:	Follow up on questions regarding drones and downtown cameras

At the February 2, 2016 City Commission meeting, a citizen asked about drones and downtown cameras.  Staff was asked to follow up on these items.

Drones:

Background:  In 2013, the City Commission had some general discussions regarding drones in response to public comments from several citizen groups including Kansans for Responsible Drone Use, ACLU of Kansas and Western Missouri, Douglas County Libertarians, Douglas County Republican Party, etc., to requesting that the City institute a  policy on drone usage. It appeared that the group was advocating for a policy that would affect all drone usage within the City At that time, the City did not pass a policy on drones. 

Current Information:  The City does not utilize any aerial drones.  The FAA continues to review the issue of drones at the federal level as the federal agency responsible for regulating the nation’s airspace and has been taking an incremental approach to the safe integration of unmanned aircraft systems, including drones.  The FAA has published a series of Frequently Asked Questions and a Factsheet on this subject.   According to the Factsheet, “a state law or regulation that prohibits or limits the operation of an aircraft, sets standards for airworthiness or establishes pilot requirements generally would be preempted, but state and local governments do retain authority to limit the aeronautical activities of their own departments and institutions.”

Question about Downtown Cameras: 

While such cameras were proposed several years ago, the Lawrence Police Department does not have any security cameras downtown. On occasion, the Police Department may place cameras in certain locations around the city associated with criminal investigations.   Also, temporary downtown cameras have been placed in the past to assist with oversight and management of NCAA celebrations. Such cameras are then removed after the event. 

There is a traffic camera at 6th and Massachusetts, and security cameras on the west side of City Hall and in the City’s downtown parking garages. The security cameras do record.