Dark streets a haven for crime

Pepco says it’s replacing the blown streetlight bulbs as quickly as possible

In Hyattsville, plans are now under way to use an already approved $70,000 community legacy grant provided by the state to install about 10 new street lights and higher wattage bulbs, Councilwoman Paula Perry told The Gazette.

Pepco, in the meantime, says it is trying to fix the non-working lights as quickly as possible.

The Hyattsville City Council Jan. 22 tasked its police department, the Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Committee, the Department of Public Works and Ward 4 council members Carlos Lizanne and Perry with developing a plan to use the funds by April 15.

‘‘In some areas you may have lighting, but on one side it’s black,” Perry said. ‘‘The lights are not bright enough. It infuriates me because Pepco keeps increasing rates.”

In 2006, Hyattsville experienced frequent streetlight outages, and by November, 200 lights were not working, City Administrator Elaine Murphy said then.

The situation has vastly improved, with only 29 lights out now, said Kim Watson, Pepco’s vice president of Maryland Affairs. She said repairs should be completed by the end of this week. Watson added that Pepco faces the challenge of not knowing when outages occur, because it depends on the city to make the reports. She said the city has been working to provide timely outage reports to the company.

Perry, however, complained about the long waiting time for repairs to be done.

‘‘We can do a study and assign areas that need to be done now, but until Pepco does something we’re just stuck,” she said.

The state originally approved the $70,000 legacy grant to light up the Northwest Branch Trail near the West Hyattsville Metro Station. However, the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission weighed in, and informed the Hyattsville council that no permission would be granted to light the trail, which is closed after dark, Councilman Christopher Currie (Ward 1) said.

The M-NCPPC granted permission to the city to use the funds instead to complete the streetlight upgrades, Currie said.

Currie has been working with Perry for several years to improve street lighting in the city, especially in West Hyattsville, where some areas have no pedestrian lights.

Ward 3 resident Sandra Dominey said inadequate streetlights in her neighborhood give the area a dangerous feel after dark.

‘‘Queensbury is quite dark and frightening at night, and side streets too,” she said. ‘‘Lighting is an issue, especially with all these thugs around.”

Edmonston also experienced several streetlight outages last fall. They were so frequent that Mayor Adam Ortiz suggested to his council that the town pay Pepco only for the time that the lights were working. In the fall, 10 to 15 percent of the lights were not working, Ortiz said.

Kenilworth Avenue and Decatur Street are Edmonston’s main thoroughfares. The council will be considering ways to brighten these and other areas of the town during the night. Installing lower lampposts to avoid tree obstruction is among suggestions forthcoming, Ortiz said. Until then, the town is zeroing in on Kenilworth Avenue, where a majority of the crimes takes place, he said.

‘‘I think we could curb a lot of our vandalism if we got that [lighting] done,” Ortiz said.

Edmonston pays Pepco monthly according to wattage used and depending on the time of year, Administrator Guy Tiberio said.

In November, the town paid $2,700 for streetlight electricity.

Edmonston budgeted $32,000 for this line item and expects to pay about $29,000 this year, Tiberio said.

In Mount Rainier, similar streetlight outages have occurred, though the situation has been improving, said Ruth Sandy, the city’s public works assistant.

There are about 30 lights out now in the city, she said.

‘‘We get complaints about streetlights being out frequently,” she said. ‘‘Pepco comes and fixes them, but not as fast as the residents would like in terms of crime. Especially in the Kaywood [apartments] area, you find a lot more break-ins in cars when there’s more lights out.”

Watson said that Pepco has been working with Mount Rainier and has had much success in reducing the length of time that lights remain out.

E-mail Sarah Nemeth at snemeth@gazette.net.