News from August CHNA meeting: New streetlight endorsed, poorly lit streets targeted, 2 cleanup days scheduled and more

Streetlight at Walker and Fulton

The new light on Walker at Fulton. Click the photo to see it bigger.

A new style of streetlight has received the support of the College Hill Neighborhood Association.  A sample of the light has been installed on Walker Avenue at Fulton Street. In its monthly meeting Monday, the neighborhood association board unanimously approved its use in the neighborhood.

While the light is designed in a historic style, it is mounted on utility poles rather than as a free-standing streetlamp.  The lights use LEDs instead of bulbs, directing the light more directly downward, rather than the lightbulb-type, 360-degree effect of College Hill’s existing lights.

With the neighborhood’s support, the city plans to install the new fixtures in spots where existing streetlights provide too little light. An initial list of such locations has been created by neighborhood residents. The city will conduct a survey to form a complete list.

Places suggested so far are:

  • West McGee Street at Spring Street
  • Tate Street at Rankin Place
  • Walker Avenue at South Mendenhall Street
  • Walker Avenue at Fulton Street, where the sample light is located

If there are any locations on College Hill’s streets that you’ve spotted that are too dark, please list them in an email and send it to us so we can add them to the list.

In addition, the neighborhood continues its years-long effort to get Duke Energy to replace two streetlights that have been eliminated by auto accidents and another that the city removed for construction and never returned. Their locations are:

  • 500 South Mendenhall, in front of the church parking lot, taken out by a car more than two years ago.
  • 800 West McGee Street, just west of Cedar Street, hit by a car over a year ago.
  • 630 Fulton Street (approximately), in front of the Province apartments.  The city removed it more than two years ago while doing street and drainage work.

The city has taken a very active role in this effort lately. Duke Energy, after years of foot-dragging, evasions and its other usual shenanigans, has had a change of attitude and is now acting in a more cooperative way. That said, the lights still haven’t been replaced, and we have no specific timetable for when they will be. But progress does appear to be occurring.

The neighborhood association also is seeking to have trees trimmed in various locations where they’re obstructing street lights and need to be cut back.

Two workdays scheduled

The neighborhood association has scheduled two workdays. Please join us and help clean up the neighborhood!

  • On Saturday September 13, we’ll have a long overdue cleanup at the tiny vacant lot the neighborhood owns in the 600 block of South Mendenhall Street. Please bring whatever yard implements you care to (one neighbor already has volunteered to bring a lawn mower). Refreshments and yard bags will be provided.
  • On Saturday October 4, we’ll have a neighborhood-wide street cleanup. It has been years since we’ve done this. It always makes a real difference. It would be a good habit to get back into. Your help is definitely needed. Please plan to join us.

And more

There was more, but this has been a lot to read. Enough already. Thanks for sticking with it. We’ll have more later this week.

Don’t forget the party at Springdale Park on September 6. More on that soon, too.

 

This entry was posted in College Hill Neighborhood Association, Duke Energy, Public Safety and tagged . Bookmark the permalink.