Orlando City Council votes to upgrade downtown lighting to improve safety

ORLANDO, Fla. — The City of Orlando wants to make downtown and nearby neighborhoods safer by installing better lighting.

Monday, Orlando City Council voted to approve the lighting improvement project, which is expected to cost $575,000.

It would include upgrades to these sections:

• Orange Avenue
• Jackson Street
• Church Street
• Pine Street
• Central Boulevard
• Wall Street
• Washington Street
• Jefferson Street
• Court Avenue
• Parramore Avenue.

LaShawnda Brown said the lighting in Parramore is poor. The grandmother said she doesn’t feel safe walking alone at night.

“We do need better lighting,” Brown said. “For safety, for one that’s the main concern.”

The city said these are the areas along Parramore Ave. that would be included in the project:

• Intersection of W. Robison St. and N. Parramore Ave.
• S. Parramore Ave. from W. Anderson St. to W. Church St.
• Intersection of W. Washington St. and N. Parramore Ave.

The city said improvements would include removing existing light fixtures and installing brighter and more efficient LED fixtures on pedestrian acorn light poles, cobrahead light poles, and lights mounted on signal mast arms.

The project has been in the works for years, but the city said staff wants to speed it up. We’re working to learn a timeframe for when the project could be complete.

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