Digital eyes are coming to Olde Towne Gaithersburg to scan the once-thriving commercial hub for gang activity, police say.
A series of surveillance cameras will be installed between East Diamond and North Summit avenues primarily to squash robberies in an area city leaders are desperately trying to revive.
“Gaithersburg does have a gang problem throughout the city, specifically in Olde Towne,” said acting Police Chief Chris Bonvillain.
About 10 street gangs are active in the city, which account for roughly 20 percent of police activity, said Detective Patrick Word.
He said the majority of crime in Olde Towne is tied to Hispanic gangs, particularly street robberies and “nuisance crimes” that could keep people from spending money in the corridor.
Bonvillain said he thought Gaithersburg residents would welcome the addition — and any fears over Big Brother would subside — pointing to Baltimore and the District of Columbia, which already employ surveillance cameras.
Currently, cameras are used only for certain government and public buildings, the police chief said.
Gang activity has swelled in residential areas bordering Olde Towne, where housing isn’t as high-end as the rest of Gaithersburg, he said.
Throughout the Washington region, leaders have pointed to a declining gang presence as largely responsible for improving crime statistics. Local governments have poured money into more police officers at schools, security camerasand youth outreach campaigns — even with budget crunches.
Gaithersburg police don’t know how many cameras they will use yet. They received nearly $120,000 in federal grant money tied to gang prevention.
Bonvillain said they also considered putting the cameras in Market Square, a mixed-used and commercial pocket on the city’s west side, but will gauge the effect on Olde Towne first before implementing more.
“This is something we wanted to explore,” he said. “We’ll see how it works.”
