CPS Energy study on lighting conducted for East Side

SAN ANTONIO - A CPS Energy study on lighting for the East Side has been conducted.

It was ordered to better serve the needs of families who don't feel safe in that part of town.

The study for the area took about one month to complete and the goal is to now add about 2,000 lights in five specific neighborhoods on the East Side.

Those neighborhoods include Denver Heights, Government Hill, and Dignowity hill.

This study is just phase one of a main city study on lights that was requested by city council.

Akeem Brown, Senior Management Analyst for the Office of East Point, said the goal is to take a look at crime hot spots and which streets need to have more lights added or fixed.

"We are looking at right now is our lighting would cost over two million dollars just for those neighborhoods, specifically, we have the results but nothing has been confirmed," he said.

CPS Energy officials also said that if a resident needs a security light installed on their own property, they would need to pay an extra fee. However, if a resident wants a light to be added on a specific street, they wouldn't have to pay for the service because it is handled by the city itself.

"If they want a light installed on their property of on their house, there is a fee associated with that. It ranges between $8 to $20 a month," said Nora Castro, CPS Energy Spokesperson.

The cost also depends on the brightness of the light and if a pole needs to be installed.

Results from phase one of the study still need to be reviewed by the city in order to move forward with funding. Nothing has been confirmed at this time.

CPS advises all homeowners to report any problems with lights either on personal property or on nearby streets.

Problems can be reported by calling CPS or by going online to www.cpsenergy.com.

We will continue to follow the progress of the study.