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Elyria Rt. 57 street lights still out, leaders search for repair funding

Posted at 10:49 PM, Mar 08, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-08 22:48:52-05

Elyria city leaders are searching for the funding needed to repair dozens of broken street lights along a 6 mile stretch of Route 57.

The street light outages, from Lorain Boulevard to Chestnut Ridge Road, have some drivers and residents concerned about safety along the busy highway.

Elyria Mayor Holly Brinda agrees the broken street lights need to be repaired as soon as possible, but said finding the $200,000 to get the job done will take some effort.

Brinda told News 5 the city was looking into removing half of the 330 light poles along that part of Route 57, and have the remaining light fixture fitted with LED bulb, but she explained her city engineer concluded the remaining light output would not meet standards set by the Ohio Department of Transportation.

Brinda now believes she can obtain a large portion of the need funding through rebate programs and grants.

"Well I think it's urgent," said Brinda.

"We do have a NOPEC grant that can be applied to energy conservation issues like the replacement of LED lights."

Brinda said she'll be asking city council to move quickly during the upcoming March 19 meeting.

Brinda believes it's possible to put together a fund package that would have all the broken street lights repaired by the end of this coming Spring.  

"We do have a gap of about $40,000, but there may be some other funds," said Brinda.

"We have a city energy conservation fund, and we may be able to take out of that."