University of Virginia Library

City Plans To Install
Lights Near University

By BUCK COLE

City traffic and engineering
director Hugo Malanga
discussed a crash street
lighting program to combat
crime in the University area at
a public meeting last night in
the Gordon Ave. branch
library attended by a sparse
crowd of 13.

Residents in attendance
were strongly in favor of Mr.
Malanga's proposal to install III
new lights, and to upgrade the
intensity of the 157 lights
currently in the area.

Mercury Vapor Lights

Mr Malanga announced last
week that $10,000 to $12,000
will be allocated to fund the
proposal in the 14th Street
area, and in the vicinity of
Jordan Hall on Jefferson Park
Ave., across from the hospital.

Under the present plans,
mercury vapor lights, which
provide more intense lighting
than normal street lamps, will
be installed in a section
bounded by the 14th Street,
University Ave., Rugby Road
and Grady Ave.

Special lighting will also be
placed in an area along
Jefferson Park Ave. from
Jordan Hall to Brandon Ave.
and back to the Southern
Railway tracks.

Confer With Residents

Before action is taken Mr.
Malanga hopes to confer with
students residing in the area.
Once the measure is finally
approved, Virginia Electric
Power Company, he said, can
install the new lighting within
three months.

If this program is
acceptable, Mr. Malanga wants
the installation of street
lighting in crime-ridden areas
to become a general city
policy.

The current city policy on
street lighting requires a
resident's petition and 60 per
cent approval of the property
owners on the block.

"The weakness of this
process" Mr. Malanga
asserted, "is that there is no
uniform lighting in the city and
areas which need lighting to
prevent crime do not receive
enough petition support."

"Like the sidewalk policy,
the street light policy of
placement by petition has
produced poor results." Mr.
Malange said.

The city is currently
spending $70,000 each year on
street lights. Each residential
light costs $21 per year to
maintain.