Agua Dulce Neighborhood News

Streetlights at Agua Dulce

At the annual meeting on February 4th the issue of putting streetlights

in Agua Dulce was discussed. Some residents would welcome the

increased sense of security. At the end of the discussion a showing

of hands suggested the overwhelming (we estimate 90+%) majority

favored the present dark streets.

Before we bought our home on Banner Mine, we drove in at night

and sat in front of the house for a long time. The dark street, the stars,

the view, and the peace and quiet were very appealing. We feel that

streetlights would threaten that.

An organization to oppose the proliferation of night lighting, the

International Dark Sky Association, is based in Tucson. It was

founded to protect observatories like Kitt Peak from city lights.

See www.darksky.org. They point to research that suggests

that crime rates do not change with increased night lighting; it

gives only a perception of increased safety.

The neighborhood vandalism has for the most part occurred

in already-lit areas such as the swimming pool or people's

driveways. We feel that the increased community awareness

has already helped prevent recurrences.

It was also mentioned at the meeting that the Tucson Mountains

Association, our neighbors surrounding Agua Dulce, would have

a negative reaction to any effort to add street lights.

Tucson Electric Power offered to put in the lighting "for free", but a

phone call to them said that was contingent on the electrical trenches

already being in place. Our research suggests that the annual

electricity expense per streetlight is around $200.

To conclude, we understand our neighbors' security concerns or

worries about encountering wild animals such as snakes or javelina.

We often walk in the neighborhood at night, and low lighting, especially

on the perimeter dirt paths, causes us to carry a flashlight and/or stay

in the street. Small accent lights, rather than high street lights, might

improve path visibility, but not change the essential character, the dark

skies, the stars, the city views, of Agua Dulce.

Robet Blackett and Debbie Harrison