Mayor Noam Bramson launches energy-efficient street light upgrade.
This morning, I joined DPW officials and the City’s lighting contractor as we together replaced a conventional street light on Hamilton Avenue with a new energy-efficient LED. That’s 1 down; 6,912 to go. Because during the next few months, all of New Rochelle’s street lights will be upgraded.
The new lights use about 65% less electricity and will cut the City’s energy use by almost 2.8 million kwh every year.
Of course, that also means lower expenses, with estimated annual savings of about $639,000. (Our net savings in the first seven years will be less, about $150,000 to $200,000, as we pay back the $2.95 million cost of equipment and installation.)
Upgrading our exterior lighting was one of the recommendations in New Rochelle’s sustainability plan, GreeNR, and it is good to see this initiative underway.