Older lights on River Road in Fair Haven will come down on an as-needed basis. (Photo by Dustin Racioppi; click to enlarge)
By DUSTIN RACIOPPI
River Road in Fair Haven is lit up like a runway now that new streetlights have been installed on both sides of the thoroughfare.
You may have noticed, as well, that still stationed on the stretch through downtown are the old lights, casting pallid halogen beams down over the new, old-look fixtures.
Those aren’t coming down any time soon, although they will be shut off, making for a uniform glow down the renovated streetscape of the busy road, officials say.
The borough council, looking to save about $6,000 by hiring a contractor to take down the old streetlights, has opted to go with a Jersey Central Power & Light proposal to cut the power to the lights and take them out. But the power company will only take them from the sidewalks on an as-needed basis, said Administrator Theresa Casagrande.
“It may take some time, but eventually they will come down free of charge,” she said. “To spend about $5,000 all at once, when they’ll come down all on their own, seems a little excessive.”
In other River Road-related news, the borough has met with Monmouth County officials to reduce the number of neon-yellow pedestrian crossing signs, which town officials and residents have complained were too numerous.
Mayor Mike Halfacre said the discussions have been fruitful, and together they’ve worked on a “sign reduction plan.”
The federally-funded River Road streetscape, he reports, is all but done, with minor close-out issues being worked on.
