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Council considers options, costs for converting decorative streetlights to MnDOT standards
Summary
Council and staff discussed options for meeting MnDOT lumen requirements on 1st Street, including retrofitting decorative poles (staff cited an estimate of about $121,300), switching to MnDOT 'cobra' fixtures, or keeping decorative lights on select blocks; the item will return to a workshop for further consideration.
City staff briefed the council on possible approaches to bringing decorative street lighting into compliance with Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) lumen requirements on 1st Street.
Staff described three main options: retrofit existing decorative poles to meet MnDOT lumen requirements, replace fixtures with MnDOT-standard cobra-type lights (which MnDOT could install and pay for as part of construction, though the city would be responsible for reinstallation costs), or limit decorative fixtures to premier blocks (Broadway and Main) and use simpler lighting or bollards elsewhere. "To convert the decorative lighting to meet more of MnDOT's required lumens, it would probably mean adapting each of our poles with about a $121,300 dollar," staff said, noting that the project team was still sorting which elements to phase and which to include.
Staff also said Geotech has offered up to 20 sample lights for use around the community, and the council discussed keeping certain decorative fixtures near City Hall. The presiding officer and staff emphasized that additional design and cost details will be discussed at an upcoming workshop, and no funding commitment or formal selection was made at this meeting.
Council members asked clarifying questions about which poles would be kept, who would pay for reinstallations after construction, and whether certain decoratives could be stored and reinstalled by the city. The transcript does not contain a final cost estimate or vote on the lighting approach; the record shows the item is scheduled for further consideration.
