City College is preparing the installation of a video surveillance system at the stairs of the Oak Restoration Area below East Campus.

Eric Fricke, head of campus security, said the plan for cameras was suggested by the Santa Barbara Police Department in 2007 after a woman was attacked. Fricke said a witness was able to scare the attacker away, but no one was arrested. He added that if there had been a camera the person might have been caught.

“Nobody is going to be sitting around watching the cameras,” Fricke said, ” but if something happens we can go back and look at it.”

The locations being equipped with video include entry points from Cliff Dr., the bottom of the fire road by Pershing Park, the stairs by the tennis courts, and a “few places in between,” Fricke said.

The college received bids from numerous contractors and in March accepted the lowest bid from CSI Electric Inc. The expected total price of installation is $88,740 and is being paid with Measure V funds.

Fricke said the installation is going to begin near the end of May.