You can now access info about GR and Kent County flock cameras

Our Take

Credit to 13 On Your Side for flagging that Grand Rapids and Kent County have rolled out a transparency portal for their Flock Safety camera network. On paper, that's a step in the right direction — most communities running ALPR systems don't bother telling residents where the cameras are or how the data gets used. But a portal is only as good as what it actually discloses. Does it show every camera location, every law enforcement agency with access, every out-of-state data request that's come through? Or is it a curated feel-good page that stops short of the details that matter?

Transparency without accountability is just better PR. The real questions aren't answered by a dashboard: who can query this network, how long is footage retained, what happens when ICE or an out-of-state agency investigating abortion-related travel asks for a pull, and what recourse does a resident have if their plate gets flagged in error. A list of camera coordinates doesn't tell you any of that. We'd rather see audit logs, search justifications, and enforceable retention limits than a map with some blinking dots on it.

If you're in the Grand Rapids or Kent County area, don't just take the press release at face value — go look at what's actually being disclosed and ask your local officials to go further. Check our own camera map to see what's already been documented in your area, and visit our take-action page if you want to push for real oversight instead of a portal that just checks a box.