What are Flock cameras and why is Silverthorne getting them?
Summit County Sheriff's Office plans to put Flock cameras, which already exist on parts of Interstate 70, in Silverthorne in 2025

Kit Geary/Summit Daily News
The Summit County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Silverthorne will soon be looped into a nationwide security camera system with the addition of several cameras on its major roadways.
Undersheriff Peter Haynes told Silverthorne officials at a Dec. 11 meeting, thanks to a $472,000 grant, areas in Silverthorne like Adams Avenue, Maryland Creek Road and Buffalo Mountain Drive will be getting Flock Safety cameras.
Flock cameras are a type of Automatic License Plate Recognition technology which sends information into central databases. Haynes said law enforcement agencies and private entities, such as businesses and homeowners associations, across the country have been utilizing Flock Safety’s camera systems. He added the Colorado State Patrol already set up some Flock cameras in spots along Interstate 70, which aided Summit County’s law enforcement agencies in tracking stolen vehicles that traveled as far as California.
Flock Safety’s systems have received both praise and criticism within Colorado and throughout the nation.
Law enforcement agencies in Arapahoe County were applauded for successfully using Flock cameras to get stolen vehicles back to their owners this past summer, while officials in Elbert County discontinued its contract with Flock over privacy concerns this January.
The city of Norfolk, Virginia battled its own lawsuit related to Flock cameras this fall, brought on by the Institute for Justice, which also stemmed from privacy concerns.
Haynes looked to quell concerns over privacy and said, “no one is (going to be) sitting there watching them.” He said there’s conversations about adding them to other Summit communities, like Dillon, and said Breckenridge is “looking to put a couple more in” as well.
The $472,000 in federal grant funding was received in April thanks to the help of U.S Rep. Joe Neguse, who worked to help secure the money for purposes related to combating human and drug trafficking along Interstate 70.
Haynes said what made Flock cameras enticing to the sheriff’s office is they are a license plate reader with beefed-up technology, noting the cameras have the ability to identify more than just a license plate number on a car and can pick up on other qualities as well. He said they also can be of aid in missing person cases as well.
“It’s no secret, we live on this highway and thieves like to travel the highway, and they like to steal cars … we don’t want them to do that any longer,” he said. “This is a quick way for stolen cars to come up on these (Flock) cameras and for us to be able to seek them out.”
Council member Amy Manka questioned how long data is stored in the system and if a stolen vehicle could be located even if the theft were reported days later.
Haynes said data in the system goes back months and even up to a year.
Council member Tim Applegate wanted clarification on whether private citizens could access Flock’s systems, to which Haynes replied they could not.
Silverthorne officials said the town could have Flock cameras installed and operating by May.

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