The City of Dallas recently received an award for its work in advancing “Smart City” initiatives.
An organization called Smart Cities Connect highlighted Dallas’ Red Cloud neighborhood as a standout smart city pilot program, making Dallas one of its Smart 50 Awards winners.
Council Member Jaime Resendez, whose district includes Red Cloud, said, “District 5 is honored to have been selected as the City’s first smart community and now to be known globally for our efforts. We look forward to being an example of what is possible not just across Dallas, but in other cities around the globe.”
The project in Red Cloud provided “community Wi-Fi to almost 190 homes in the neighborhood, Air Quality Environmental Monitors (AQMs), and AI-enabled situational awareness cameras at select locations,” according to a press release.
“These improvements are expected to provide the city with neighborhood-specific data which can be used for future enhancements to public safety and infrastructure planning,” the press release noted. “City staff will continue to test the capabilities of the technology with the goal of potentially expanding on the services provided and replicating the Red Cloud project on a wider scale across the city.”
“Strong applicants will represent innovative projects with current or future municipal-scale impact and application. Applications should clarify their connection with a municipal or municipal-similar partner such as a county, region, campus, installation, base, or facility complex,” Smart Cities Connect explained.
As a winner, Dallas will receive registration waivers to the Smart Cities Connect conference and award reception. Additionally, the City will receive “a shiny trophy.”
Dallas has been pushing to adopt various smart city initiatives, as reported by The Dallas Express. According to international observers, Dallas is ranked among the top 10 cities in America to enter into a “smart city future.”
A part of the movement includes the expanded usage of drones and unmanned aerial surveillance tech, as The Dallas Express covered. Additionally, the city is working to add AI-equipped cameras that can detect gunshots and collect data on the city.
The Red Cloud neighborhood is one of the areas in town already hosting such new-age devices.
However, smart city initiatives have raised considerable concerns regarding citizens’ privacy and safety from cybercrime.
“Cyber attacks can also pose a threat to the safety of citizens if hackers are able to gain control of critical functions like water, gas, and electricity,” technologies company OnLogic highlighted.
As reported by The Dallas Express, a cyberattack against Dallas on May 3 allegedly affected many City departments, including police and firefighter operations and even the public libraries.
In subsequent months, City staff, at the direction of City Manager T.C. Broadnax, have struggled to restore full functionality to computer systems dealing with crime reporting, emergency vehicles dispatch capabilities, and more.
Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia explained to The Dallas Express, “It’s definitely hampered us, there’s no question about it.”
At the time of publication, the City still has been unable to restore public-facing crime statistics, diminishing accountability and public safety.
Similarly, the cyberattack has allegedly prevented the City from fulfilling legal disclosure requirements in response to open record requests, as covered by The Dallas Express.
