The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Decorative lighting project begins
Initial phase includes portions of Route 615, Route 20
Phase 1 of Mentor’s Old Village Lighting Project is getting underway.
Wadsworth-based Perram Electric Inc. will install 36 decorative light poles along Route 615 between Routes 20 and 84, and along Route 20 between Route 615 and Cadle Avenue.
The style of the lights will be comparable to the ones on Civic Center Boulevard, and portions of Route 615 and Route 306 near Interstate 90.
“These lights will be another effort to add to the vibrancy of the Old Village district,” Mentor Public Works Director Matt Schweikert said in August, after the project was awarded.
“City Council defined the Old Village as a community reinvestment area, which has led to improvements such as the Old Village Hall.”
The new lights will be full cut-off with LED fixtures and are viewed as a safety improvement as well, increasing visibility without causing light trespass.
Perram Electric Inc. was hired at a cost of $572,572.
“The project will require the occasional fairly short lane closure for the drilling of foundations and installing the posts,” Schweikert said. “That should be the worst of traffic impact.”
Phase 2 involves adding 60 poles, arms and light fixtures on Route 615 from Route 20 to Carpenter Drive, and on Route 20 from Route 615 to Little Mountain Road/Jackson Street. It also entails removing 13 FirstEnergy lights.
The second phase hinges on completion of the Route 20 widening project.
The phases represent total investment of about $2.4 million.
The projects are to be funded via tax increment financing and revenue from the city’s street lighting assessment program.