By Marisa Sardonia
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer is calling for the city to end its contract with Flock Safety, citing residents’ concerns about the company’s license plate readers and overall surveillance.
Manheimer said in a statement Wednesday that she will call for a vote at the next Asheville City Council meeting to authorize the city manager to terminate the contract. That meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 25.
“I have heard clearly from Asheville residents, and I’m calling on Asheville to turn off the Flock cameras and remove them, which requires terminating the Flock contract,” she said, in part, in her statement. “After careful review and consultation, I have determined it would not be enough to call for a moratorium on the use of Flock technology, because our contract does not allow for the removal of the technology unless we terminate the contract.”
Manheimer said the Asheville City Council adopted Resolution 26-97 in May 2026, which she said aimed to “reaffirm the protection of civil liberties in the collection and use of data by public safety officers.” Manheimer said that despite this resolution, continued reporting on Flock’s control and use of data prompted further action by the city council.
The mayor is also calling for the city to provide a transparent policy over the handling and deletion of data collected by Flock cameras as part of the contract termination process. She said Interim Police Chief Jackie Stepp has already begun this work.