PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (CBS12) — Port St. Lucie officials said 18 Flock cameras installed in county and state rights-of-way are scheduled to be removed by the vendor by Sept. 30, as the city pauses its automated license plate reader program amid continued privacy concerns.

The update came during public comment at a City Council meeting on Monday, where several residents urged council members to permanently remove the cameras and prohibit future permits for Flock and other automated vehicle-tracking systems.

Casey Honeycutt called for a citywide ban on Flock cameras and similar systems, arguing they pose privacy and surveillance concerns.

Port St. Lucie resident Jorge Borgess directly asked council members to remove the cameras and take further action. He asked the city to stop issuing permits for automated license plate readers and other vehicle-tracking systems in city-owned or city-controlled rights-of-way, and to pursue removal of existing cameras.

Borgess said Port St. Lucie police announced Sept. 1 that the department would pause the program and remove seven cameras. He told council he counted eight of 22 cameras still standing at locations he believed required state right-of-way review.

Dr. Steven Grier also addressed the council, saying he has sued the city, Mayor Shannon Martin and Flock in federal court. His lawsuit allegations were not discussed by the council during the meeting.

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Later, Port St. Lucie resident James Reynolds joined the criticism, telling council members the city had previously achieved its public safety goals without Flock cameras.

“We need to make sure there’s punishments for misuse; we need to make sure that retention periods are addressed; our audit is complete,” Bonna said. “I know there have been local incidents of misuse, and so this isn’t something abstract.”

Bonna said he was not calling for all cameras to be taken down immediately.

“What I’m calling for is to pause the program, and when I say pause, I mean pause, and let’s get this policy right, so it protects both our liberties and safety,” Bonna said.

During the discussion, city officials said the police chief’s white paper calls for nine cameras in county rights-of-way and nine in state rights-of-way to be removed by the vendor.

“The city can’t take them down; the vendor needs to take them down,” an unidentified city official said. “Those 18 cameras will be taken down.”

An unidentified city staff member later confirmed the scheduled removal date.

“The date is Sept. 30 that the cameras will be taken down,” the staff member said.

Port St. Lucie police had previously announced an operational pause on its Flock and Axon license plate reader systems after the Florida Department of Transportation revoked approvals for the technology in state highway rights of way. At that time, police said seven city cameras located in FDOT rights-of-way would be removed.

The city’s pause limits use of the remaining systems to cases involving an immediate threat to life, including missing or endangered people, with authorization from Police Chief Leo Niemczyk.

The discussion follows a broader debate in St. Lucie County. Earlier this month, county commissioners voted 3-2 to stop new permits for Flock cameras and other automated license plate readers in county-controlled rights of way, review existing permits and issue removal notices where appropriate. The county action went beyond FDOT’s order, which applied only to state highway rights-of-way.

The county vote did not apply to cameras on private property or devices mounted in law enforcement vehicles. Sheriff Richard Del Toro said his office would comply with the state directive while tightening internal rules for deputies’ use of the technology.