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When a Houstonian wants a new streetlight to illuminate a dark corner of their neighborhood, they have to send a request to City Hall.
Usually, they also have to cough up a $200 fee.
Ken Rodgers, president of the Greater Third Ward super neighborhood, said he was surprised to find out that getting a new streetlight on his own block would cost hundreds of dollars.
“But I’m often surprised at the way things work,” he said.
City Council on Wednesday is set to consider a proposal to ax that fee, eliminating a potential barrier for neighborhoods seeking better lighting to make their communities safer.
Calling streetlights a proven safety improvement, a Houston Public Works spokesperson on Tuesday said the proposal is intended to make city government fairer.
“The cost presents a barrier to vulnerable communities, so as part of efforts to make traffic safety improvements more equitable, HPW proposed to waive the fee for residents,” spokeswoman Katelynn Burns wrote in a statement.
Small fee, big obstacle
City code currently requires residents to pony up the first-year’s operating cost for new streetlights if they request their installation, a task actually carried out by CenterPoint Energy.
The fee applies only to new lights on metal poles on side streets, not to wooden poles or lights requested for major thoroughfares.
The installation fee averages about $200, according to the city. That seemingly small fee blocks most resident requests for new lights, however.
Of the 148 times ordinary residents requested new lights in 2021 and 2022, they wound up getting their wish 36 percent of the time, according to city data. The rest of the time they either could not, or would not, pay the fee.
Private developers were far more successful, receiving streetlights in 82 percent of their 414 requests over the same period.
Top priority for some
Houstonians generally agree that the city’s next mayor should address its aging physical infrastructure, and streetlights stand out as one area for improvement. A survey published by the Kinder Institute for Urban Research at Rice University in September found 23 percent of residents rated their streetlights as poor or failing.
There also are wide disparities in the distribution of streetlights in different parts of the city, according to earlier research from the Kinder Institute.
Fred Woods, who heads up Northwood Manor Civic Club in Northeast Houston, said he cannot remember the last time a new street lamp went up in his neighborhood, but he knows they need more.
“I’m supportive (of the proposal) if it reduces the barrier for neighborhoods that don’t have lighting to gain access and gain the lighting that’s needed for public safety,” he said.
In August, the Abdelraoufsinno reported on a father-daughter duo from Third Ward who had taken it upon themselves to tackle one of the neighborhood’s top public safety priorities – light – by mapping out poorly illuminated corners of the area.
In the case of the streetlight request on Rodgers’ block, neighbors agreed to split the cost. The light has not yet been installed, he said.
Rodgers agreed that the new measure coming up for a vote on Wednesday could help lower the barrier for Houstonians seeking light.
“You know how I feel about lighting in Third Ward,” he said. “Not enough of it.”
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