The city’s infamous or famous, depending on your point of view, red-light cameras could be turned off by the end of the year if Bryan Nelson, newly elected Apopka mayor, can get two of the four city commissioners to vote with him.
Mayor Nelson said this week that a campaign promise of his to get rid of the cameras would be fulfilled if he and at least two other members of the City Council vote to void the contract that the city has with American Traffic Solutions (ATS) to run the red-light cameras across Apopka.
The Apopka Police Department monitors 20 red-light cameras scattered throughout the city, although most of the cameras are placed at intersections along U.S. Highway 441, which is also known as Main Street through downtown Apopka.
Nelson said the City Council’s vote to get rid of the cameras by the end of the year must come by September 30 because the city’s contract with ATS, which is based out of Arizona, calls for the city to give a 90-day notice to cancel the contract.
The City Council approved the renewal of the Apopka’s contract with American Traffic Solutions last June, but it narrowly passed 3-2 with current Commissioner Kyle Becker voting against renewal of the contract. Current Commissioner Doug Bankson voted yes on the matter.
Apopka’s contract with ATS calls for the company to remove the red-light cameras within 45 days after the contract is terminated, if the City Council votes to remove the cameras.
The city pays ATS $4,250 per month for each camera installed. The funds for that payment come from the payments of those who receive the tickets that are actually code-enforcement fines, not traditional traffic tickets.
Apopka was one of the first cities in the state to install the red-light cameras and if the City Council votes to get rid of the cameras, then the commissioners and Mayor Nelson must find a way to replace the nearly $1 million revenue the city makes off the cameras.
For more updates from Mayor Bryan Nelson, read the page 1A article in the Friday, May 4, issue of The Apopka Chief.
