In spring 2001, the ASUO granted Facilities Services $150,000 of the overrealized fund to try to improve safety on campus by increasing outside lighting, but facilities isn’t just going to plop a new light wherever there’s a dark area.
Instead, Facilities Services, the ASUO, the Office of University Planning, the Office of Student Life and
the Department of Public Safety envision improving lighting on “campus corridors” — highly traveled, designated paths.
Student Life Associate Director Sheryl Eyster said in the past, new lighting has been put up rather sporadically.
“Boom — a light goes here and a light goes there. But if we put a light by Deady (Hall), for example, students might be drawn to walk there because they think it’s safe,” she said. “Rather, we should put a lot of lighting in designated areas to keep traffic” there.
She said all the organizations involved want every decision to be well thought out. But right now, no concrete decisions about where and when the money will be spent have been made.
Another question that has arisen is whether adding more lights conflicts with ASUO’s “Doin’ it in the Dark” campaign to reduce energy costs and ultimately eliminate the energy fee.
Electrical supervisor Bob Springer said because the new lights will be more energy efficient, the additional costs will probably be minimal. Operations manager Ron Bloom said facilities is waiting for student input before deciding which corridors to focus on.
But the ASUO input that facilities is waiting for seems nonexistent. ASUO President Nilda Brooklyn said ASUO hasn’t really been involved in the planning, as the “executive role is giving the money.” She said ASUO is leaving it up to facilities to decide how the money will be used and where the lights will be placed on campus.
Another obstacle that facilities must overcome is a new city
code that restricts “up lights,” Bloom said. He said the lights used on campus now “look like airport lights. They light up the whole sky.”
New bulbs would use less energy than current bulbs and would direct more light where it is needed, Blooms said. Replacing current bulbs could mitigate the need for additional lighting, so it is difficult to project what new lights would be needed.
The one project already under way will replace lights along the corridor from the EMU to the East Bean parking lot. The first new pole has been put up with a new, efficient bulb on the west side of the Agate Street crosswalk, Bloom said.
It is unclear whether the money will focus solely on improving lighting on campus corridors, or if the money will be used for other safety-related maintenance costs, such as repairing sidewalks or trimming back bushes.
The money for the lighting project was allocated from the 2000-01 overrealized fund. Enrollment was significantly higher than projected for the year, which allowed ASUO to distribute the extra money to various projects on campus, including the ASUO “Bucks for Ducks” contest, the Center on Diversity and Community, and Facilities Services. Brooklyn said some of the money was distributed to facilities because of student demand for more lighting.
The involved organizations will be meeting Feb. 28 to discuss energy consumption and student concerns. They plan to develop a timeline for when the new lights will be installed.