Leaders in San Juan Capistrano are looking to add license plate reader cameras to crack down on parking violations downtown — at a time when the surveillance technology is facing increasing scrutiny in Orange County and nationwide.
The San Juan Capistrano City Council voted 4-1 during a meeting earlier this month to move forward with the technology as a part of a broader downtown parking program. Councilmember Sergio Farias voted no.
Mounted on parking enforcement vehicles, the cameras would scan license plates to determine whether vehicles are complying with parking time limits, paid parking requirements and employee permit restrictions, according to city plans.
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The plan comes as license plate recognition (LPR) technology — especially Flock cameras — has drawn concerns over privacy and surveillance concerns in Orange County and across the country.
San Juan Capistrano already uses Flock cameras after the city council purchased and installed 10 of the devices in 2022. In 2023, the city installed 10 more cameras, bringing the grand total to 20 Flock cameras at city parks, facilities and traffic signals.
City leaders raised concerns about privacy during their discussion earlier this month about getting more license plate reader cameras, specifically for parking enforcement.
Councilmember Howard Hart questioned whether the technology would actually benefit residents.
“Who is this serving? Who is this making it easier to park downtown?” he asked during the Sept. 1 meeting. “Are we really making a difference on the macro-level?”
Despite raising questions about the cameras, Hart voted to install them in the downtown area.
Julie Dixon — president and founder of Dixon Rel. She said the license plate recognition cameras would help the city enforce parking regulations more consistently
Staff is expected to issue a formal request for proposals from different providers for leaders to review before a plan goes into effect, according to a presentation from city staff during the meeting.
The larger parking plan also includes new parking enforcement positions, changes to parking time limits and improvements to downtown access.
The cameras would give the city a new way to monitor parking downtown, but council members questioned their impact and raised concerns about privacy.
How Are the Plate Readers Expected to Work?
The proposed license plate recognition system would use cameras mounted on parking enforcement vehicles to read license plates and determine whether a vehicle is following downtown parking rules.
Dixon said the cameras would allow officers to check parking eligibility without manually examining each vehicle — the system recognizes whether a vehicle is eligible for parking based on time limits, paid parking requirements and permit zones.
“Your license plate becomes your credential,” Dixon said.
The cameras would also allow the city to track how long vehicles remain parked. Dixon described the process as “virtual chalking,” in which the program digitally marks a vehicle and can determine whether it has moved.
In addition to enforcement, the technology would collect parking data — including occupancy and usage — to give the city a clearer picture of how downtown spaces are being used.
Dixon said the technology could reduce the amount of time parking officers spend manually checking vehicles, although the city would still need enforcement staff.
“I think it is important to understand that there are a lot of headlines right now associated with LPR,” Dixon said. “Our use of LPR for parking policies would be dictated and informed and published.”
Councilmember Farias questioned whether the technology could create privacy or legal concerns, particularly if cameras captured license plates belonging to people who were not violating parking rules.
“Are you comfortable — if the city council went forward with this technology procurement — that we would be able to set it up in a way that we would not see lawsuits?” he asked the city attorney during the meeting.
City Attorney Jeffrey Ballinger noted that many lawsuits involving LPR technology have involved uses broader than parking enforcement.
“I would feel comfortable with this kind of technology from a legal perspective,” Ballinger said.
License Plate Reader Controversies in Orange County
License plate recognition technology has faced scrutiny in other Orange County cities, particularly over privacy, data and how the cameras can be used.
Costa Mesa — which operates 46 Flock automated license plate readers throughout the city — recently faced calls to remove the cameras after a former police officer used the system to stalk women and romantic rivals.
The scandal prompted residents to question how the cameras collect and store information, as well as who has access to the data.
Despite the concerns, the Costa Mesa City Council voted in July to keep the city’s contract with Flock while directing staff to renegotiate its terms. Council members discussed establishing stricter rules governing access to the system.
Other Orange County cities have also expanded their use of the technology. Orange renewed a Flock contract worth more than $350,000 earlier this year, while Anaheim approved $735,000 for 72 additional license plate readers.
During the Sept. 1 meeting, San Juan Capistrano City Councilmember Hart questioned whether the cameras would actually address the city’s broader parking problems.
“I don’t know that license plate recognition is really moving the needle there for me.”
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