The Huntsville City Council put off a vote on a contract Thursday with a company to mount AI-operated cameras on garbage trucks to search for blight within the city.

At City Council President John Meredith’s request, the council postponed the vote until Sept. 25, when it will also vote on the Fiscal 2026 budget. Meredith was concerned with moving forward this fiscal year with the tightening of the current budget.

District 4 Councilman Bill Kling and District 1 Councilwoman Michelle Watkins also voiced numerous concerns, although Kling said he did not want to “kick the can” too far down the road.

The proposed three-year, $972,200 contract is with City Detect, a company that provides an AI-powered software platform designed to identify potential code violations and public works issues. According to the city’s website, the system works by mounting cameras on city garbage trucks, which already travel every street on a regular schedule. The cameras collect visual data from public rights-of-way, and advanced AI tools then analyze the images to identify concerns such as overgrown grass, graffiti, illegal dumping and property neglect.

City Administrator John Hamilton said the city will have to get back with the company because of the delay in the vote.

If a contract is approved, he said there will be no automatic citations or fines associated with the system and no enforcement bots.

“The system simply gathers visual data as garbage trucks go about their routes,” he said. “That footage is then reviewed by city departments such as Community Development and Public Works. If something appears problematic based on the City Detect data, a human inspector takes a more informed, closer look, just like they would today, only more efficiently and with better insight.”

During a work session dedicated to efforts to rid the city of overgrown grass, structurally unsafe buildings, and other nuisances, District 2 Councilman David Little asked about privacy issues involving the technology. Kling and Watkins repeated the concerns Thursday. Watkins also voiced a concern the system could be used down the road as a reason to cut staff.

And people at Thursday’s meeting voiced concerns and opposition, including one resident who referred to the system as a “peeping Tom” attached to a garbage truck. Questions were also raised about where the data would be stored.

At the work session, Huntsville’s Chief Innovation Officer Larry Lowe said the technology would blur images of people, including children who might be playing in yards. Hamilton repeated the claim on Thursday.

Community Development is the city department that enforces ordinances involving overgrown grass and other property neglect issues.

According to the city, the system would benefit the following departments:

Community Development

• In 2024, roughly 3,600 of 8,500 citations were related to overgrown vegetation.
• During peak growing season, inspectors are nearly fully occupied with vegetation complaints.
• City Detect will free up staff to address structural blight and severe property issues.
• Enables a proactive, city-wide approach rather than relying solely on resident complaints.

Public Works

• Debris pickup optimization: Currently, boom trucks must search entire routes for debris piles. With City Detect, garbage trucks can gather data during regular runs, and a targeted pickup route can be generated for boom trucks the next day, thereby reducing wear, improving efficiency and expanding coverage.
• Pothole detection (in development): Within 12 months, City Detect aims to roll out a new feature that detects potholes and road degradation using front-facing cameras. This becomes a powerful tool for future repaving decisions.

Landscape Management

• Illegal dumping and litter: City Detect will help identify hotspots for litter and dumping so they can be addressed proactively.
• This data can also support volunteer efforts and community cleanup coordination when areas are safe and accessible.

The initiative would begin as a pilot program, with the initial focus on supporting the Community Development and Public Works departments. If successful, the system could be expanded to other departments and services.

Hamilton said the company has similar contracts with other cities, including Columbia, South Carolina. Hamilton said there is no intent to use the system to reduce the number of employees, but the system would give employees an additional tool.

Huntsville currently uses inspectors and follows complaints from residents in investigating property maintenance issues. Residents have complained to council members about the timeliness in which nuisances are taken care of around town.

Last year, the city inspected more than 10,000 sites for potential code violations.