The downtown area in Knox will be getting a little bit brighter thanks to a decision made by the Knox City Council last night. The council members voted unanimously to approve Mayor Dennis Estok’s request to replace 10 bulbs in the downtown area with new LED bulbs.
Mayor Estok started looking into new lighting options after receiving continuous complaints about the darkness downtown. He has been working with a representative from Herrman and Goetz, discussing the best route to take.
Estok started by installing one bulb on Main Street to have council members weigh in with their opinions. They all agreed that there was a noticeable difference. Estok said now that they know the bulbs are brighter, he wants to test out more in order to see how multiple bulbs would illuminate the area.
Estok said to install new bulbs and globes it costs between $400 and $500 for each light so the project to replace the fixtures in the poles that line Main Street from Washington Street to Dollar General will cost approximately $4,000 to $5,000.
Since the City of Knox pays a standard rate per light, it won’t technically cost any less to run the lights with the new bulbs. However, according to Mayor Estok, replacing the bulbs will be considerably less costly than having NIPSCO come out and install new poles, which was another option that came up during his research.
The new bulbs also will be much brighter than the old ones which will result in the downtown area being far illuminated than it has been in recent years. After these ten new bulbs are installed and the Mayor and council members receive feedback, Estok said further research will be done looking into possible revitalization grants to obtain in order to have the rest of the light fixtures in town installed with new LED bulbs.
