"We probably could have hundreds of cameras on this system," says George Markert, executive deputy chief with the Rochester Police Department. "I think we're only limited by time and money."

Video cameras should start appearing on utility poles, buildings, and other places around the city of Rochester during the first week of April. The exact locations haven't been determined, Markert says, but will be chosen based on community input and crime data and trends.

The digital cameras will record 24 hours a day, he says, and will be monitored in real-time at the Public Safety Building. The data will be stored for 30 days.

"We're not going to record and store it forever. It's just not possible," Markert says. "There's a lot of concerns about ‘Big Brother.' We're taking as many steps as are available to us to assure that the cameras can only be used in the public domain. There will be strict controls on the whole recording side of it."

For example, Markert says, the software allows an administrator to "lock out" certain camera positions to avoid accidentally peering into someone's private residence.

"I'm sure they wouldn't do it intentionally, but even from a mistaken standpoint, the camera just won't go that way," he says.

The cameras are primarily a crime deterrent, Markert says.

"Cameras are not the solution and may not be the best tool in all areas," he says. "They need to be used in conjunction with other techniques."

It hasn't been determined who will monitor the cameras, Markert says, and that worries Gary Pudup, chapter director of the Genesee Valley Chapter of the New York Civil Liberties Union.

If civilians or a private security company is monitoring, there are questions of accountability, Pudup says.

"We're not wholly opposed to cameras in and of themselves," he says. "Of course, it's always the slippery slope we're concerned about."

This month, City Council will vote on whether to award ECC Technologies of Fairport a $260,000 contract for work related to the city's video surveillance system. Councilmember Carolee Conklin raised several questions about the system at a meeting last week. She said she wants more information about ECC and how the cameras will operate.

"Maybe somebody is going to tell us when they're going operate, other than soon," Conklin said.