St. Louis police Chief Joe Mokwa recommended the $30,000 project at Wednesday's Police Board meeting and it was approved.

The cameras will be like the nine cameras used at the recent Mardi Gras celebration in Soulard.

Additionally, those nine cameras will be updated and incorporated into the program for an extra cost of $100,000. IBM Corp. will pick up most of the tab.

The St. Louis Downtown Partnership will monitor the cameras 60 hours a week.

Mokwa hopes the system will be operational by spring.

Mokwa said the cameras would be able to pinpoint trouble within a 10-block radius.

The Police Board also approved a larger police budget of over $144 million.