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chiptex, anonymous:

White Rock Crime Lights Project =

Some years ago, White Rock Lake Foundation (WRLF) proposed putting street lights around the lakefront.

Obviously the park requires some lighting - at the entrance to parking lots, etc.

The City did not want to pay for the project - neither the light poles nor the cost of the utilities.

So WRLF took it upon themselves to raise the money themselves - as quoted in the Advocate, February 2005 =

http://www.advocatemag.com/uploads/pd...

WRLF was unable to raise private funds for its project.

The WRLF website shows a rendering of street lights along the lake - during the day.

http://www.whiterocklakefoundation.or...

So WRLF got Parks to find money in the spillway repair project and got an earmark in a bond issue.

As reported in the Dallas Observer on May 1st

http://news.dallasobserver.com/2008-0...

Hossley Lighting Associates, a lighting vendor, was brought in as a "consultant" by WRLF and Parks http://www.hlalighting.com/

The lake shore lighting plan was done by Hossley, WRLF, Parks (Willis Winters), and a DPD patrol officer.

Only Hossley knew anything about lighting - the WRLF are laymen, Willis Winters is an architect, and the DPD officer was a beat cop.

Parks rubber stamped the final plan - with no input from the neighbors or neighborhoods.

And the contractor started putting in the street lights in parking lots on W Lawther - until the neighbors started to complain.

Councilman Kadane called a halt to the project, and a called a meeting for May 22 at 7:30 at Winfrey Point

The City's cover story on this project is the need for "more security".

But from a security standpoint, the need for this much lakeside lighting has never been demonstrated.

Most crime in the park is burglary of motor vehicles (BMV) - during the day - approximately 8 BMVs per year on W Lawther

Lighting lake front lots won't prevent that. They will just enable burglars to see into parked cars - and burglarize them at night.

Lakeside lighting will attract more people to the park after the midnight curfew.

So on balance, over-lighting the lake shore could make crime go up in the park - not down.

Security cameras would be a better deterrent - they work day and night.

The real crime here is the number of lights proposed around the lake = a $500,000 contract to spoil the lakeside views every night for everyone.

If you cannot attend the meeting on the 22nd, tell Councilman Kadane what you think about lighting up the lake shore at night:

sheffield.kadane@dallascityhall.com