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ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION – MAY 27, 2025 6 Undersheriff Ramacher confirmed. The city would be agreeing to the model and the growth that’s attached to the model. It will become a line item in the budget. Councilmember Weber said he believes the current contract with RCSO ends in 2029. The Flock contract would exceed the contract with the sheriff. He wonders what will happen if any of the contract cities decides not to renew the contract. Councilmember Holden said it should be written into the Flock contract that we are null and void if the RCSO contract is not renewed. Undersheriff Ramacher confirmed. That could be amended. Councilmember Weber said this is a County-wide initiative. That should be handled at the County level. He understands that will probably come at the cost of contract costs to the contract cities and to the general populus of the County. He can live with that. He said Arden Hills has no control over the camera, the data it collects or the costs in the long run. It’s not our camera. Commander Hankee said RCSO is the police department for Arden Hills. They are embedded in the community. Undersheriff Ramacher said he doesn’t want a model where RCSO just makes the decision and the cities have to live with it. That isn’t the way to do business. They have to gain public trust in a variety of ways. This is one of those ways. This is a topic that has had some “big brother” controversy, they want to be transparent. They want buy in and support from the cities. They know residents will come to the City Council to ask questions. They want that accountability. Councilmember Weber said if they want support, ask the contract cities for a resolution in support. This is a county wide initiative. He could argue that these cameras serve to catch people coming from St. Paul. Undersheriff Ramacher asked Councilmember Weber why he thinks crime rates are so low. He asked if he thinks it has anything to do with the police agency Arden Hills contracts with. Councilmember Weber said he is not condemning RCSO. He said the statistics prove that RCSO is providing us adequate policing. That doesn’t justify a city budget line item for cameras that the County is going to own and operate. Undersheriff Ramacher said what hears is “Our crime rate is already low and we don’t need to spend more money.” Councilmember Weber said he expects City contract prices and County-wide policing costs to increase because of this program. It is a County-wide initiative, not a City initiative. Undersheriff Ramacher said it is a City initiative because Arden Hills has to have some ownness of the responsibility to keep the City safe. Technology costs money and that cost has to be passed down to the residents. Councilmember Weber agrees with that and it should be passed down through our contract. We pay for police and that reflects our commitment to the safety of our residents. He resents the