Savannah has a plan for parts of town with dimly lit streets, hoping to soon light up Savannah.
City Council entered into a partnership with Georgia Power on Thursday night with the Light Up Savannah Initiative, a project designed to address crime and traffic safety through improved lighting around Savannah. The agreement passed council with unanimous support.
Passed at Thursday’s City Council Meeting was an agreement to launch the first part of the multi-phased initiative, which will consist of a three-month audit of city street lights to determine areas of need. The initiative will cost $700,000 over two years.
“This is something that is needed to make continued progress on several of our public safety and quality-of-life goals,” said City Manager Jay Melder.
Mayor Van Johnson touted the initiative as a key public safety measure. When previewing the council meeting during his weekly press conference Thursday morning, Johnson recalled a street in the Cuyler-Brownville neighborhood during his time in council that saw crime reduction after a spotlight was placed on the block to light it up.
The example highlighted how addressing lighting needs can aid public safety, Johnson said.
“We know that we have a city that is challenged in many areas because of lack of lighting,” Johnson said at the presser. “Where it adds to the allure of our city, we also know that consistently dark places add to criminal activity.”
Three public pools to receive upgrades
Council also passed improvements to three city-owned pools at Daffin Park, W.W. Law and Tompkins Center. The projects will cost $614,829 and are funded by a Special Purpose Option Local Sales Tax (SPLOST).
Credit: Savannah Morning News
Credit: Savannah Morning News
Melder said these improvements will go towards pool foundations, such as liners and structural walls. There will also be future investments to add amenities around city pools to make them more inviting spaces, Melder said.
Evan Lasseter is the city and county government reporter for Savannah Morning News. You can reach him at elasseter@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: City of Savannah, Georgia Power partner to Light Up Savannah to address crime, traffic safety
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