Video surveillance and camera systems for St. Louis-area properties
IP cameras with UniFi Protect recording, view-anywhere apps and access-control integration, so when something happens you find the footage in seconds.
Cameras are only useful if you can find the footage
Most camera systems are bought to satisfy an insurer or check a box. They sit unused until something happens, and then nobody can find the clip. We design surveillance around the questions you’ll actually need to answer.
“Who came in the back door at 2 AM last Tuesday?” needs door events linked to cameras. “What was the plate on the car that hit the dumpster?” needs a license-plate camera at the right angle and retention long enough to find it after the report comes in. “Did anyone touch the mailroom packages overnight?” needs motion zones and a notification policy.
We standardize on UniFi Protect for most deployments: cameras, recorder, search and access integration in one stack, with recording on site on a UniFi console or NVR and no per-camera cloud fee. Where off-site copies are needed, UniFi Protect can archive to Google Drive or OneDrive, or we can recommend a cloud-managed platform.
Camera problems we fix for property owners
If any of these sound like your parking lot, lobby or loading dock, this is the work we do.
You have cameras, but nobody can find footage when something happens.
Timeline scrubbing, event search and door-event links. A badge swipe opens the matching clip in one click.
Cameras point at the wrong things, with lenses too wide or too narrow.
We survey before ordering, choose lenses for distance and field of view, and aim and lock every camera at install.
Night footage is grainy and nobody’s identifiable.
Cameras tested at real nighttime light levels, with added illumination where infrared alone isn’t enough.
Retention is seven days, and you hear about incidents two weeks later.
Retention sized to your reporting cycle, typically 30 days minimum and longer where policy requires.
The license-plate camera shows a blur.
Dedicated license-plate cameras with the right shutter speed, lens and illumination.
Constant motion alerts, so everyone ignores them.
Motion zones and person/vehicle detection, so alerts fire when something matters.
What we install in a surveillance project
Cameras, recording, remote access, integration and storage, designed together.
Camera selection and placement
Interior, exterior, parking and license-plate cameras, each placed from a site survey and validated with test footage.
Recording and retention
On-site recording on UniFi Protect consoles or NVRs for most sites. For off-site copies, UniFi Protect cloud archiving to Google Drive or OneDrive, or a cloud-managed platform where that fits better.
Remote viewing and permissions
Live and recorded video on phone, tablet or browser, with roles so managers see their property and regional staff see the portfolio, plus a log of who viewed what.
Access-control integration
Door events linked to camera clips, the most useful feature in an integrated security system.
Storage and bandwidth design
Bitrates tuned per camera and storage sized so retention is achievable without slowing the rest of the network.
Footage export with an audit trail
Clips export cleanly for police, insurers or attorneys, with a record of who accessed and exported them.
What drives the cost of a camera system
Camera count matters, but so do where the cameras go and how long you keep footage.
Number and type of cameras
Standard domes, multi-sensor, PTZ and license-plate cameras sit at different price points.
Mounting locations
Exterior poles, high ceilings and parking lots need lifts, conduit or trenching that interior cameras don’t.
Retention period
More days of footage means more storage. Thirty days and one year call for very different recorders.
Existing cabling and network
Reusable cable and PoE switching lower cost; new runs and switches add it.
Recording model
On-site recording is mostly a one-time hardware cost; cloud-managed platforms add per-camera subscriptions.
Integration scope
Tying cameras to access control, the intercom or alarms adds configuration time.
Every project gets a free walk-through and a line-item design at three price levels.
Camera installation across St. Louis & the Metro East
From Maryville, we install camera systems across Madison, St. Clair and Monroe counties in Illinois and St. Louis City, St. Louis County, St. Charles County and Jefferson County in Missouri. That includes parking lots and mailrooms at apartment communities in Edwardsville, Collinsville and Fairview Heights, lobbies and loading docks at commercial buildings in Clayton and Chesterfield, restaurants in Belleville and O’Fallon, and municipal buildings across the Metro East. Typical camera locations include gates and parking lots, mailrooms, trash enclosures and loading docks.
Illinois properties should know about the Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA): facial recognition and other biometric features need written policies and consent, so we leave them off unless you’ve cleared them with counsel. Larger projects beyond the metro are taken on by arrangement. See our service area.
From site survey to trained staff
Four phases, one project lead, line items from day one. An optional service agreement keeps firmware current and covers remote troubleshooting.
Where we install cameras most
Multifamily focuses on amenity areas and package rooms; commercial and hospitality on lobbies, registers and license-plate capture; public buildings on retention rules.
Multifamily Housing
Lobby, mailroom, parking, trash.
See industry →Commercial Real Estate
Building-wide coverage.
See industry →Hospitality
Registers, kitchen, exterior, parking.
See industry →Government
Public-safety coverage with retention rules.
See industry →Pair cameras with these systems
Cameras are most useful when they’re tied to door events and the front-door intercom.
The camera platform we install and support
UniFi Protect is our standard: cameras, recording, search and access integration on one platform. If you’re weighing a cloud-managed system, read our UniFi Protect vs. Verkada comparison. We can also work with other platforms on request.
Video surveillance questions
Retention, existing cameras, compliance, access integration, license plates, exports and camera counts.
Default is 30 days for most clients. Longer (90 days, 1 year, 7 years) for compliance environments such as healthcare, education and government. We size storage and bandwidth at design to make retention achievable.
Sometimes. We assess what's there. Cameras with usable image quality and modern protocols (ONVIF) can often move to a new recorder or platform. Old analog cameras typically can't and aren't worth keeping.
We install camera systems that support compliance programs. Retention policies, access logs and storage configuration can align with HIPAA, FERPA and similar frameworks. Setting the policy is your job; the technology supports it.
Yes. When access and cameras run on the same UniFi platform, every door event ties to a camera clip, and searches by user, time or door work across both systems in one interface.
Yes. Dedicated license-plate cameras with proper shutter speed, lens and, for night use, infrared illumination. Plates are indexed and searchable. Common at multifamily gates and commercial parking entrances.
Yes, on any modern platform. Live and recorded views from phone, tablet or browser, with role-based permissions so the right people see the right cameras.
Yes. Clips export with timestamps, and the system logs who viewed and exported footage, so you have an audit trail.
It depends on the building and what you need to capture. Typical coverage is every entrance, key common areas (lobby, mailroom, gym, parking), high-incident areas and gates. For a typical mid-size apartment building, that's 25–50 cameras. We survey the site before quoting.
We don't install in-unit cameras unless it's a resident-owned smart-home install. For privacy and legal reasons, surveillance is for common areas and exteriors.
Ready to talk about video surveillance?
Your free three-option design: Good / Better / Best, line-item, yours to keep. We respond within 24 hours.