Canceled
Who approved this?
No source names who approved this contract. That gap is common where a purchase cleared without a council vote.
The Natick Select Board voted unanimously at its January 21, 2026 meeting to end the police department's Flock Safety license plate reader pilot and to create a working group on the technology. The board members are Bruce Evans, who chairs, Kristen Pope, Linda Wollschlager, Rich Sidney and Kathryn Coughlin. Coughlin raised the prospect of a bill for $30,000 if the town stayed in past the opt out window written into the memorandum of understanding with Flock. Police Chief Hicks apologized for how the pilot began and said the department is not sharing its data with anyone, adding that data practices would follow ACLU and Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association guidance. A 1 year state grant had been awarded to pay for the program if it went beyond the pilot. The Swellesley Report wrote on February 1, 2026 that the board had been blindsided by the pilot. No source gives the number of readers installed, a signed contract amount, the grant program name or how each board member voted.
Natick ended its Flock contract
Contract ended a date pending records.
The money
- Funding source: Other grant
Not yet in the sources: the contract amount, the camera count, and the approval date. Natick Select Board holds the approval file, and the records request guide gives the wording to ask for it. If you already hold the document, send it in.
What happens next
This decision already happened in public; the record and its sources are above. If the community revisits the question, that decision would follow the same public process: a noticed meeting, public comment, and a recorded outcome, all through official channels.
Sources
- Natick Report: the Select Board quashes the Flock license plate reader pilot and the chief apologizes (January 22, 2026) natickreport.com
- The Swellesley Report: the Natick Flock pilot is nixed after the board was blindsided (February 1, 2026) theswellesleyreport.com
Last verified: September 7, 2026. Something wrong? Request a correction.
The record
Natick Select Board approved this Flock contract; the sources give no date. Natick Police Department runs the cameras.
Funding: A 1 year state grant awarded to fund the program if it continued past the pilot.
The contract ended as canceled.
2 sources back this record; each is listed with its date under Sources. Last verified September 7, 2026. More from the state: the Massachusetts hub. Everything: the tracker.
Cite this record
Who Approved This, "Natick, MA Flock Contract," whoapprovedthis.org, accessed October 8, 2026, https://whoapprovedthis.org/city/ma-natick/.
Related
Read on
- Salem, MA Expired
- Cambridge, MA Canceled
- Grafton, MA Canceled
- Camera locations near Natick: DeFlock (external, crowdsourced)
- Agency transparency portal, if published: transparency.flocksafety.com; aggregated at Eyes on Flock