— by Fred Klein —
After reading the recent Orcas Issues article AND the many comments concerning potential “street” lights for Eastsound, I don my flak jacket and suggest that a reasoned discussion of the issue begin with a few facts. I plead that, as a community, we have a thoughtful conversation rather than settle for an exchange of slings and arrows along w/ barbed sarcasm.
First…the Eastsound Planning and Review Committee (EPRC), of which I am a member, has no dog in this fight. The Committee is responding to an initiative of the Orcas Chamber of Commerce which represents our local businesses and believes that consideration be given to our providing our village with some form of “street” lights to address their concerns about building security and safety for pedestrians and vehicles.
Because of EPRC’s recent activities concerning Eastsound’s “streetscape” with pending improvements for Prune Alley and “A” Street, EPRC has agreed to explore this issue. Just as EPRC sought out and worked with EVERY property owner on both Prune Alley and “A” Street to meet their needs as well as extend the ambiance of our sidewalks and landscaping of Main Street and N. Beach Road, EPRC will make every effort to generate an informed and thoughtful conversation about this topic within our community and hopefully reach a consensus on what may be deemed appropriate, to do, or not to do.
By “consensus”, I do not mean 100% agreement…rather, I rely upon this definition:
“a decision by a group of people, a decision which everyone may not feel is the best decision, but a decision which everyone can live with, and commit themselves not to undermine”
As a first step towards that conversation, please take the time to read a very timely article in the New Yorker which was sent to me recently entitled, “The Dark Side, Making War on Light Pollution”:
newyorker.com/magazine/2007/08/20/the-dark-side
If you’d like to dig deeper into the risks and consequences of “overlighting” and glare, and the importance of quality of outdoor lighting rather than quantity, go to:
comcast.net/crime/LightingAndSafety
I found three takeaways from these two articles. The first is that more light often results in less safety, security, and an unpleasant nighttime experience for both pedestrians and drivers…and that the most important thing is NOT the quantity of light but rather the type of fixture used to provide the light. The second was the importance of considering how the eye responds to light, and my third takeaway is that well-designed village lighting holds the promise of reduced energy usage along with enhanced safety and security for business owners, drivers, and a pleasant environment for pedestrians out for a stroll.
In the absence of ANY lighting in the public realm, other than two glaring sodium vapor lights on OPALCO poles, it’s hard to argue with the efforts of individual property owners to provide some security lighting, especially in light of recent burglaries. Unfortunately, some of these efforts ignore the fundamentals of effective, efficient outdoor lighting with disappointing results for anyone willing to take the time to observe Eastsound after dark.
Please attend the EPRC & Chamber of Commerce Public Meeting on Thursday, March 26th from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Senior Center…express yourself and become informed!
This will be an opportunity to critique the EXISTING lighting in our village, review existing regulations for lighting, and to learn about of the wide variety of possibilities for providing some illumination of the public realm while maintaining our beloved village character.
I will repeat: Check out the three, I think attractive tall street lights around the Outlook Inn, designed in keeping with the Inn, and casting a very low light. One perhaps doesn’t notice them as they blend in with the surroundings, yet do their job.
How improved street lighting reduces crime: https://www.popcenter.org/library/scp/pdf/141-Painter_and_Farrington.pdf
One thing to consider is the impact if the village has lots of different kinds of street lights, rather than on unifying style throughout the village–if you choose to install lights at all. Over the years Friday Harbor has ended up with now five different street light types. Thoughtful planning is everything.
In the 18 years we were innkeepers, the question of “what is there to do after 5PM on Orcas Island?” was right at, or near, the top of the list of questions from vacationers. If The Chamber has information that there is suddenly an after dark group of merchants in sufficient numbers to warrant having street lights in Eastsound to see what is going on then some discreet lighting would be helpful. But…. “need” should be fundamental to this issue and we don’t need lights to see what isn’t going on, yet.
Coming back from the ferry one evening I turned into Prune Alley heading to the Market and came very close to hitting at least one of about five men crossing the street from the Lower. There was no street light on (there is a pole there). If you picture the way your headlights swing on a left turn, you can see how I easily could have hit them before they were illuminated. Fortunately I was going quite slowly and it was an “almost.”
Back in the 70’s OPALCO promoted streetlights and a neighbor about a block away on each side of me had one installed. It ruined stargazing for one, but I didn’t need a nightlight in the house, they were so bright. I think it was Shaw Island’s Ellis that referred to them in a letter to the Editor, as “night-blooming monstrosities!” Doubt they did anything for our safety factor, and they’ve been long gone.
Fred’s back-of-the-room slide presentation at the recent village meeting with the EPRC and the Chamber of Commerce convinced me that it is possible to have useful street lighting without causing light pollution.
Fred’s presentation included the relevant county ordinances, all of which forbid the sort of light-polluting fixtures we now see around us in Eastsound village.
I wonder why these lighting fixtures were allowed in the first place, or, once in place, permitted to remain, since they are, essentially, forbidden by law.
Replace the light-polluting lamps and fixtures, and I will become a most avid convert to low-level, effective street lighting in Eastsound.