TR Robertson
TR Robertson … The Vista City Council will take under consideration the awarding of a contract to Select Electric, Inc. of Vista, at the council meeting on November 15, to begin construction in January 2017, of additional lighting for various locations in Historic Downtown Vista and the replacement and enhancement of lighting in this area as well, along with surrounding streets.
Anyone who has been in the Historic Downtown Vista area in the evening or late at night knows that there are various locations that need additional lighting. Having a safe and well lit area used heavily by the public is a safety concern.
The original plan was to be a luminaire replacement project only, but was expanded to be a lighting enhancement project once further studies were conducted about the coverage the current streetlights give this area.
The primary area studied included between Vista Village Dr./Citrus Avenue and Eucalyptus Avenue/South Santa Fe Avenue. Conrad “Skip” Hammann Jr., of Hammann Consulting, the current Program/Project Management director, said the study revealed the need to fill gaps to supplement existing light coverage, and the existing electrical system needed to be upgraded to support additional power requirements of the new lights.
Upgrading the system will also allow for the future enhancement of the electrical system to assist with future special event programs in the downtown area. It was also pointed out, the addition of electrical charging stations in the downtown area was under consideration and a possibility with the construction of the new parking areas off of Broadway and the construction of the office/residential area in the vacant lot along Main St.
Mr. Hammann said the proposed lighting project will be a 4 phase process:
- In areas with existing ornamental lights, the new supplemental light poles will match the existing light poles. The luminaires on existing lights will be replaced. All luminaires the existing lights within the project area will be retrofitted with new LED lights similar to the recently installed LED lights on South Santa Fe.
- The existing luminaires on the light poles along Broadway will be changed from a dual head luminaire to a single head LED acorn fixture similar to the fixtures recently installed on South Santa Fe Avenue.
- Light poles serving existing city parking lots, will be a concrete pole with a bell shaped LED luminaire.
- Outside the Village area, the street lights will be the standard city street light, a concrete pole, mast arm and LED luminaire.
City parking areas were also evaluated and will be part of the lighting enhancement project in the downtown area. The city received 8 bids for the Downtown Lighting Project. The winning bid was Select Electric, Inc. Of Vista, who was allowed to match the low bid based on a provision of the Vista Municipal Code that supports local entities. The project will consist of 60 existing luminaires with LED fixtures, adding 52 new LED street lights and upgrading the existing electrical system.
The original luminaire replacement project, before the study, was to cost around $400,000. After the study, and based on the lighting and electrical needs in the Historic Vista area, the project is estimated to cost $1.2 million. On November 15th, The Vista City Council will consider for approval the bid to allow this project to begin sometime in January of 2017.
Lighting improvements to the Historic Downtown area will add to the look, appeal and safety in this area. As this area continues to add restaurants, breweries, and other businesses and expands to other street locations outside of the Historic area, additional lighting will serve to assist patrons coming to the various events and businesses in Vista.
