DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Cameras now line Seabreeze Boulevard, one of Daytona Beach’s busiest entertainment strips, to help police keep an eye on the crowds.
The eight high-tech cameras are attached to 20-foot aluminum poles and have a 24/7 livestream the police can watch.
“It feels really good, and it makes me feel really good that we have an added level of security,” said Commissioner Ken Strickland.
It’s a concept commissioner Strickland had been working on for almost two years. Strickland and the mayor funded the majority of the $147,000 project using COVID funds.
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“We’ve been allowing a minority — or a handful of people — to create havoc, and we needed to take care of that,” Strickland said.
Strickland first went to the city asking for cameras after the 2022 Bike Week murders. Police at the time said the suspect, Jean Macean, randomly attacked and killed a couple in the Seabreeze Historic District. Police identified Macean by piecing together businesses’ surveillance video.
Since then, police have responded to several shootings and other crimes around Seabreeze.
“I think once the word spreads that we’re monitoring everything on the street, they’ll start to behave a little better,” Strickland said.
People who work and live around Seabreeze told News 6 they hope so, too.
“I think it’ll make a huge difference,” said resident Shiloh Barry. “When you walk outside your door at nighttime and you’re ready to go home and there’s a shooting going on less than 100 feet away, that’s a problem.”
Strickland said the city is also getting the ball rolling to get the cameras along Main Street and in Midtown Daytona Beach as well.
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