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Council presses Cleco on street-light outages and LED conversion; mayor to withhold funds pending camera completion
Summary
Councilmembers raised repeated outages and slow repairs to street lights under the Cleco contract; the mayor said he is holding $300,000 tied to camera deployment until remaining cameras are installed and will coordinate a schedule of Cleco patrols and LED replacements.
Councilmembers raised complaints about recurring outages and delayed repairs to street lights on streets including Hopkins, Jane Street and the Bank Avenue/park area. Members said outages reduce safety and limit the effectiveness of the city’s camera system.
The mayor responded that under the contract the city already has hundreds of LED lights in service and that Cleco has agreed to convert lights to LEDs at a set pace; he reported that the number of LED lights in the city rose from 892 at contract signing to 1,387 at the time of the meeting. The mayor said he is withholding a $300,000 allocation tied to police-camera project completion until outstanding cameras are installed, and that any city-funded additional LED lights would be distributed evenly among districts.
Council members asked for clearer documentation of Cleco patrol schedules and a map of which lights will be inspected and replaced; the mayor said he has asked Cleco to provide a 2025 patrol schedule and suggested the city’s new GIS system could host a map of lights and patrol activity for staff and residents.
Why it matters: Street lighting affects public safety, camera performance and residents’ willingness to use public spaces at night. Council members said they expect Cleco to honor replacement and patrol commitments in the contract and urged more rapid repairs for chronically failing lights.
