Resident questions Linden lighting project in budget; city staff say project addresses standards and circuit extension costs

A Clayton resident raised objections Sept. 9 to a line-item in the FY2026 capital budget that would fund a Linden Avenue lighting extension between Pershing and Kingsbury. Resident Kathleen Gund, of 329 North Beemiston Avenue, said the project appeared disproportionately expensive given it would primarily benefit about six households and that east-side lights provided by University City already exist. She urged the board to explain why the city would add lights on the west side and whether less costly alternatives exist. Matt, a city staff member involved in street lighting, told the board the project originally stemmed from concerns that University City'owned lights along the east side were dim or nonfunctional and did not meet Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) standards when the project was first scoped. He said the significant portion of the project cost is associated with boring new conduit and extending an existing circuit into that block, and estimated the block-level project cost at about $70,000. Board members and staff also said the city is undertaking a larger program of street-lighting standardization and replacement that will adopt consistent pole and fixture types across the city; planned projects this year and tornado replacements will use those new standards. Staff said they would check whether the University City-owned lights had been upgraded since the project was first proposed. The resident noted the project had appeared and disappeared from prior years' capital lists and returned in the FY2026 budget, which prompted the public comment. Ending: Staff said they would review the condition of the University City-owned fixtures and follow up with the resident; the board did not make any immediate change to the capital plan at the meeting.