City seeking input on LED lighting

The city of Coeur d’Alene is inviting residents to provide feedback until the end of October on different LED (Light Emitting Diode) street lights to determine if specific standards should be adopted.

Input is being sought prior to all Avista-owned streetlights in the community being transitioned to LED in 2018. Avista has already changed 606 of 1,825 lights to LED fixtures, as the energy-saving bulbs are installed when lights need replacement.

The city has partnered with Avista on a street light pilot project to determine if certain color temperatures of LED lights are preferable in residential areas. Several lights between Eighth and 11th streets and Boyd and Pennsylvania avenues (west of Lakes Middle School) within the Garden District neighborhood have been changed from high-pressure sodium bulbs to either 3,000 Kelvin or 4,000 Kelvin LED lights. The Kelvin measurement indicates the color temperature rating of the light, with a higher number indicating the light radiates more bluish-white.

Avista is in a five-year program to replace nearly 30,000 company-owned streetlights in its service area with energy-efficient LED lights. In addition to the energy savings, LED streetlights last two to three times longer than high-pressure sodium, improving reliability and reducing maintenance costs.

Community members are invited to view lights in the pilot project area and share their feedback by emailing led@cdaid.org. Specific lights can be noted by referencing the lightpole’s identifying tag, which includes letters and numbers. To get unbiased input, the specific bulb type used on each streetlight has not been identified as part of the pilot. Avista’s existing standard for LED lights is 4,000K. Many communities throughout the U.S. have adopted standards for lower color temperature LED lights within residential areas.

For more information on Avista’s LED change out program, visit myavista.com/streetlights.