Escambia County Program Installing an Additional 517 Street Lights

Several local neighborhoods are about to get a little brighter, thanks to Escambia County’s Safe Neighborhood Street Light Program installing an additional 517 lights across five Community Redevelopment Areas and Safe Neighborhoods.

The latest phase of the program is expected to be completed by mid-February, bringing more LED street lights to the Avondale, Cantonment, Creekside Oaks, Lincoln Park and Wedgewood/Rolling Hills neighborhoods.

Creekside Oaks resident and Homeowner Association President Michael Zacko said he and his neighbors are thrilled to have 34 street lights installed on their streets, which they hope will not only improve safety for pedestrians, but also discourage crime.

“Everybody thinks this is a positive thing that will help our neighborhood in many ways,” Zacko said.

Escambia County Safe Neighborhood Coordinator Nick Jordan said the lighting projects align with the Safe Neighborhood Program’s goal of keeping local neighborhoods clean and safe. The lighting projects focus on strategically placing street lights in neighborhoods where the need was present, Jordan said.

“Street lights can deter crime and improve pedestrian and traffic safety,” Jordan said. “It makes the neighborhood more unified. When you cross into one of these areas, you’re going to be able to see a difference – it increases awareness and visibility in the neighborhood.”

Zacko said Creekside Oaks is a nice subdivision, but the many trees in the area tend to block the light and the view of the street, contributing to some crime in the area. He said his vehicle has been broken into several times in the three years that he’s lived in the neighborhood.

“The lights are a very good deterrent, because now you’ll be able to see when it’s all said and done,” Zacko said.

The Escambia County Board of County Commissioners approved the five lighting projects on Sept. 21, 2017, which will include funding for the recurring energy costs for the street lights. During fiscal year 2016-17, 1,401 LED roadway streetlights were installed throughout the Myrtle Grove Safe Neighborhood, Atwood CRA/Safe Neighborhood, Ensley CRA/Safe Neighborhood and the Warrington CRA District to help eliminate crime and increase driver and pedestrian safety.

Wedgewood resident Rev. Carrie Brown, an associate minister at Allen Chapel AME Church in Pensacola, said only time will tell how helpful the streetlights are at deterring crime, but she and her neighbors are definitely hopeful.

“The neighbors I’ve talked to are glad that we’re getting the lights out here…,” Brown said. “I was happy to come home one night and see part of my street was lit up. I was very happy to see it, because I thought it would cut down on some of the activity out here.”

Jordan said the streetlight projects are part of the board of county commissioners’ focus on improving neighborhood safety by making dark areas brighter. The county’s Safe Neighborhood Program works with residents to take control of their neighborhoods and reduce crime and blight in designated areas, also giving citizens an opportunity provide input on improvements they feel their neighborhood needs.

“These neighborhoods were identified based on the needs of the community,” Jordan said. “We work a lot with neighborhood groups, and they gave their input on what their needs were. We evaluated how we could address those, and street lights were one of the big topics everybody brought up.”

For more information about Escambia County’s Safe Neighborhood Program, visit myescambia.com/safeneighborhoods.

Avondale Street Light Project