The Seattle Mayor’s Office has received an audit reviewing the city’s closed-circuit television system, moving officials closer to deciding the future of surveillance cameras in Pioneer Square and the Stadium District. The cameras were on during the World Cup and then shut off after the event left town. City leaders must now determine whether to reactivate the network.
The NYU Policing Project delivered a draft of its independent evaluation to the city last week. Mayor Katie Wilson confirmed Tuesday that officials are currently reviewing the findings alongside the Seattle Police Department. City officials are vetting the document internally before making its findings available to residents.
“We have a draft, and we are going back and forth right now, especially with SPD, to make sure that we are dotting all the I’s and crossing all the T’s,” Wilson said. “So this is really, making sure that all the information in there is factual.”
Wilson declined a request to release the preliminary draft immediately, emphasizing that public distribution will wait until the review is finished. “Once we complete that, then we will be releasing that report to the public,” Wilson said. “So, no, you cannot have a copy today.”
Under the terms of the agreement, city leaders have up to 30 days to provide input on the initial findings, according to NYU officials. The NYU Policing Project said it cannot contractually release the draft without city feedback, though the university maintains final editorial control over the finished report. Both the mayor’s office and the university denied requests from FOX 13 Seattle to view the draft document.
The evaluation comes amid growing community debate over public safety and privacy in the affected neighborhoods. Area business groups have pressed the city to turn the surveillance system back on, while community activists have pushed for the cameras to be permanently dismantled and the funding redirected to other priorities. The exact date for the final report’s public release remains unannounced, leaving the timeline and the ultimate fate of the camera network undetermined.
