Residents to Choose New Street Lamps

Residents on blocks in Southeast Altadena that need antique steel street lights removed will get to vote on what kind of pole to install in their place.

The lamps, which are located in the blocks northwest of the intersection of Allen and Washington have a unique look: They are light green, steel and very sturdy looking.  There are two types which appear on various blocks.

The County Public Works Department presented the plans to replace the poles at a meeting last week, which was attended by about 40 people, according to Arnel Dulay, of the department's Street Lighting Division.

There are two options to replace each of the two types of pole: in both cases residents can choose the same steel model that already exists, manufactured by the same company that built the originals.  Residents could also choose a concrete version that would be painted so as to closely match the look of the original lamps.  Pictures of both options are available at right, as is a copy of the full presentation given by the county last week.

The main advantage of using concrete instead of steel is that it will greatly reduce the amount of maintenance the county has to do on the poles - concrete will never need to be repainted and will require less overall maintenance, according to the county's presentation.

The county will be sending out surveys to all residents on the block and will make the decision based on the majority vote of residents who return the survey, according to Dulay.

The work is planned the following streets: Layton, Meadowbrook, Allen, New York, and Sinaloa, New York, Midlothian, Minoru, Elizabeth, Oxford and Dominion.