Neighborhood Gate Vs. Flock Safety “Virtual Gate” — How An Arizona Community Saves $40,000 A Year

A Safer Neighborhood to Retire

Retirees who get to make their home at Solera Chandler are truly lucky. The 55+ golf community of 1,149 homes overlooks the beautiful San Tan Mountains in the Southeastern corner of the Phoenix metro area. An 18-hole golf course weaves through the neighborhood.

“Because the golf course is public, there’s no way to actually block off the whole neighborhood,” explained Barry Cohen, a Solera resident and member of the neighborhood’s Building & Grounds Committee. 

Until recently, Solera employed “gate greeters” that sat at the neighborhood gates that flank Solera’s entrances. Though Barry said “some people thought that offered security,” he acknowledged that this system left much to be desired. 

After looking into several neighborhood security options, the Building & Grounds Committee discovered Flock Safety’s License Plate Reading security cameras. They liked the infrastructure-free, easy-to-install system, the data security and privacy protection features, and the automatic software updates. 

“I found it encouraging that the system is leased,” said John Jack, another committee member. “If we have any issues, we’re calling Flock. If there’s new software, Flock takes care of that.”

Another big draw was the price. Flock’s affordable annual security camera fee meant that Solera would be getting more hours of coverage, for less than half the price when compared to neighborhood gate greeters, who cost the community about $58,000 a year. 

“The greeters were budgeted for limited hours, 70 a week. With the Flock security system, rather than limited coverage on one or two gates, we now have 24/7 eyes on all eight gates, incoming and exits,” said Barry. 

Since installing the cameras, Solera has started working directly with local law enforcement to grant them access to their footage in the event of a crime. 

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