Nearly half of Old Town street lights replaced

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Study. “Residents were asked to rank various streetlights in the Canon Green Drive neighborhood and provide feedback,” according to the agenda item. According to the results of the study the highest percentage of residents (36 percent) were concerned with brightness. The remaining concerns were: color/temperature (28 percent), night sky compliance (21 percent) and environmental issues (three percent).

“In Old Town, nearly half of the street lights were replaced and upgraded with LED bulbs. For the rest, I will see that they are prioritized for upgrades as soon as possible,” Councilman Kyle Richards told the News-Press in an email.

“The city of Goleta has made tremendous efforts in acquiring street lights from Southern California Edison (SCE) and in conversion to LED lighting. I support building on these efforts so that the city can be more expedient in responding to concerns around neighborhood lighting. Past efforts with SCE resulted in only a portion of the streetlights in Old Town being acquired - a large number of streetlights in Old Town are still under the control of SCE.

I’ve worked with SCE in the past and will engage with them on this topic in line with resident input,” Councilwoman Luz ReyesMartin told the News-Press in an email. “I encourage residents to reach out to the council with their concerns around lighting or a desire for additional street lights.

I am available to speak to any resident in English or Spanish to hear from them directly. Residents can also submit a Goleta CityAssist request to inform the city of issues with existing streetlights and also inquire about additional lighting needs.”

“With the acquisition of the over 1,400 Street Lights in March 2020, the city retrofitted the lighting fixtures from sodium-based lights to LED. This project did not involve installing any new street light poles. It involved acquisition and replacement only,” Charlie Ebeling, Director of Public Works told the News-Press in an email. The News-Press asked Mr. Ebeling if more lights would be added to streets that did not receive much attention in 2021: “The remaining streetlights are still owned and maintained by SCE. Currently, SCE is undergoing their own LED conversion process. Lighting is an important component of the City’s Infrastructure and is a component which is considered in Capital Improvement Projects. If there is a need or an opportunity, lighting is one of the features which is looked at during project design. If feasible from a scope of work and budget consideration, lighting will be added where needed. An example of current CIP projects which will be going to construction this year that includes the addition of lighting is the Hollister Class I Bike Path Lighting Project. This project will add lighting for the pedestrian/ bicycle multi-use path to help improve pedestrian and bicycle safety. This was a need identified during the original project development and the City was able to apply for and receive a Measure A grant to add lighting to the path. Another current project which will be in Construction later this year is the Ekwill Street and Fowler Road extension project which includes new lighting along Ekwill Street in Old Town. As part of the Development Review process, the City may require the installation of new streetlights as a condition of approval when applicable.”

“The remaining streetlights are still owned and maintained by SCE. Currently, SCE is undergoing their own LED conversion process which would improve brightness to the existing light fixtures; no new poles are anticipated to be installed,” said Director Ebeling. To request the installation of additional street light poles, submit your request to Michael Winnewisser, assistant engineer, at mwinnewisser@cityofgoleta. org. New light pole requests are confirmed through a local lighting analysis. If the analysis determines that a new pole is necessary to improve any lighting issues in the area, a new pole will be installed. email: kzehnder@newspress.com