Davenport Council: Skybridge will not get cameras, for now
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By Tory Brecht | Thursday, August 16, 2007 |
Surveillance cameras won’t be coming to Davenport’s River Drive skybridge in the immediate future, due to lingering questions from aldermen about the best way to curb vandalism on the structure.
In a 6-3 vote at Wednesday’s city council meeting, a motion to hire RJS Electronics of Clinton to install 30 surveillance cameras on the bridge at a cost of $39,646 was tabled, pending a future discussion session among aldermen.
Seventh Ward Alderman Barney Barnhill suggested that closing the bridge to public access between 11 p.m. or midnight and 6 a.m. might accomplish the objective less expensively. He asked City Administrator Craig Malin to explore how much it might cost to put in an electronic card locking system that would allow those who need access at night — including Rhythm City Casino employees — to use the bridge after hours.
Since it was built in 2005, the skybridge has suffered broken window panes, defacement by magic markers, broken pipes, public urination and other problems.
Third Ward Alderman Keith Meyer asked if a volunteer program could be created that would allow the bridge surveillance cameras to be monitored live, rather than reviewed on digital video recorders as the RJS Electronics’ plan calls for.
“Alderman Meyer, if you find a volunteer who is willing to monitor this, then we will find a chair and let them monitor it,” Malin said.
A date for the work session was not scheduled.
Las Bananas liquor license renewed
In other business at Wednesday night’s city council meeting, aldermen passed a motion granting a liquor license renewal to the Las Bananas nightclub.
In July, the city council reconsidered the club’s license due to concerns about its ownership.
Officials said they were concerned that Roberto Orozco, 30, of Bettendorf, still had an ownership stake in the business located at 1512 E. Kimberly Road.
Orozco was one of four people arrested July 26 after police seized more than 120 pounds of marijuana from a home at 1442 W. 6th St., Davenport. He was implicated in this incident, police said, because two 45-pound bales of marijuana found in the Davenport home had Orozco’s name on a shipping label.
Attorney Bob DeKock, who represents the club’s current owner, Sandy Cardoza, provided documents showing that she took sole ownership of the club in January 2004.
In 2005 and 2006, Orozco tried to open a night club at the former Turner Hall in the Village of East Davenport. His application for a business license was denied, partly because he declined to clearly state his ownership of Las Bananas.
Seventh Ward Alderman Barney Barnhill said he was satisfied with the ownership clarification, but warned that the council will be monitoring the club.
“We’re going to be watching this very closely,” he said. “We’ve had problems down there.”
DeKock confirmed that the club will be utilizing off-duty police officers to augment its security in the future.
Meyer asks for Bladel’s resignation
3rd Ward Alderman Keith Meyer asked Police Chief Mike Bladel to resign, then later sent an e-mail to City Administrator Craig Malin asking for Malin to request the chief’s resignation.
The reason Meyer gave in the memo was “insubordination.”
Meyer and Bladel had a disagreement at Monday’s Committee-of-the-Whole meeting stemming from Meyer’s request to have signs placed in the new police department requesting warning all interview subjects to ask that they be recorded or videotaped.
During the exchange, Bladel told Meyer that “no alderman is going to tell me how to run the police department.”
Wednesday night, Meyer said despite the fact Bladel has announced his retirement, he didn’t think he’d be able to work with him for his remaining months on the job and asked for him to resign.
After the meeting, Bladel said he would only discuss “the confidential personnel matter” with his boss, Malin.
He also reiterated that under city code 2.42.040, the chief is granted autonomy to run the department.
“All I did was re-advise the council about the authority of the police chief,” he said. “The only one I take direction from is the mayor. The reality is, no single alderman runs the police department.”
In a memo to Malin following the Committee-of-the-Whole meeting, Bladel explained that suspects are recorded, but citizens who come in to make complaints are not.
“Citizens, who come to the station on their own volition and provide information on their perception of what took place at an event are complainants, not detained suspects,” he wrote. “As such, when interacting with my professional staff at the station, there is no need for any signage warning our good citizens to bring a tape recorder or a third party witness.
Tory Brecht can be contacted at
(563) 383-2329 or tbrecht@qctimes.com. Comment on this story at qctimes.com.
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