Gary officials have allocated nearly $3.5 million to replace and repair all municipally owned streetlights.
The Gary Common Council approved Monday, in a 7-0 vote, the allocation of $3.45 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds for the replacement, repair and upgrading all fixtures to LED lighting.
“For years, our residents have raised concerns about the state of our streetlights in Gary. The Melton administration recognizes that working streetlights play a critical role in ensuring public safety,” said Mayor Eddie Melton in a statement. “Thanks to the Biden Administration’s support, we can leverage American Rescue Plan Act dollars to relight our city, one streetlight at a time.”
City of Gary Chief Operating Officer Michael Suggs said in the release that the project will be completed in phases. District 2, District 3 and District 4, which have been identified as having the most outages, will be given priority, he said.
Suggs said city officials expect that all city-owned streetlights will be repaired by early 2025.
Replacing street lights has been a priority of the Gary Common Council since 2021, said Council President Tai Adkins, D-4th, in a statement. When the city received ARPA funds, the council advocated for using some of the money to address the streetlights “to no avail,” she said.
When Melton proposed using ARPA funds for streetlights, Adkins said the council was open to considering, and ultimately supporting, the proposal.
“By investing in the replacement of outages and the installation of new streetlights throughout the city, we are taking active measures to improve livability by creating a safer and more secure environment for all,” Adkins said.
The Gary Public Works Department and TWiG Technologies completed an assessment of the city’s approximately 2,000 municipally owned streetlights, according to a city news release.
TWiG Technologies, which was paid $35,000 for the assessment, completed a physical survey of all streetlights in public roads and alleyways. The assessment, which did not include traffic lights, gave detailed information on the location and condition of each streetlight, according to the release.
In his state of the city address, Melton said the assessment found that 913 fixtures aren’t working, 110 street light poles are knocked down and 115 fixtures are on during the day.
Based on the assessment, the city was able to calculate the cost to address all municipally owned streetlights, according to the release.
With the council’s approval, city officials will put out a 30-day request for proposals for vendors to complete the streetlight project work, according to the release.
As the streetlights are repaired, Adkins said the council will urge the administration to make sure the streetlights are maintained.
“We recognize that the long-term success of this project relies on ongoing maintenance and support. Therefore, we call upon all city stakeholders to work collaboratively in ensuring the continued effectiveness and efficiency of our city’s lighting infrastructure,” Adkins said.
Council Vice President Lori Latham, D-1st, said during the meeting that repairing the streetlights will reverse “the sheer darkness” in some parts of the city, which will improve public safety.
“This is a transformative project,” Latham said. “It’ll be our responsibility to make sure that we don’t get to a point where there are thousands of poles damaged 10, 12, 15 years from now.”