Upgraded LED lighting to be installed in 16 Birmingham parks

Some of Birmingham’s parks will soon be getting a little bit brighter. On Tuesday the Birmingham City Council approved a lease agreement with Alabama Power that will transfer ownership of 345 light fixtures in 16 city parks to the company to upgrade and maintain. Alabama Power will be converting these fixtures to Light Emitting Diode (LED) lights.

Not only will the new lights be more energy efficient, but they will provide a much needed light source for areas in Birmingham’s parks that have been left in the dark for some time. After requests from several Councilors, four additional parks were added so that each district would have a park slated for improved lighting. The agreement is for 60 months at which time the city will decide to whether or not to renew the contract.

Here is a breakdown of the parks that will be receiving upgraded lighting:

Patton Park — 80 LED Fixtures

George Ward Park — 40 LED Fixtures

East Lake Park — 23 LED Fixtures

Bradford Park — 25 LED Fixtures

McMahon Park — 25 LED Fixtures

Ensley Park — 22 LED Fixtures

Dolomite Park — 17 LED Fixtures

Marconi Park — 14 LED Fixtures

Echo Highlands Park — 13 LED Fixtures

Central Park — 10 LED Fixtures

Wiggins Park — 8 LED Fixtures

Overton Park — 1 LED Fixture

McClendon Park — 30 LED Fixtures

Henry Crumpton Recreation — 10 LED Fixtures

Harrison Park — 20 LED Fixtures

Roosevelt Park — 7 LED Fixtures

Councilor Wardine Alexander, who chairs the Utilities and Technology Committee, has been an advocate for increasing public safety in the city’s parks.

“I want to promote healthy initiatives for residents in Birmingham and get them out in the parks to enjoy themselves,” Alexander said. “By insuring these LED lights are in the parks, I believe they will make residents feel safer and be suitable for them to enjoy their park experience. And the lights will provide cost-saving measures for the City and will be a deterrent for vandalism occurring in our neighborhoods.”

City officials have indicated more lights will be upgraded in the near future.

Council President Pro Tem William Parker, who chairs the Parks and Recreation Committee, said he hopes these upgrades are just the beginning. “Birmingham is blessed to have 118 amazing parks throughout our city,” Parker said. “That’s nearly 4,000 acres we have to make sure are safe an accessible to everyone. This agreement is a huge step in that direction and I’m glad to see the City work with Alabama Power toward improving our public parks for our residents.”