COMMUNITY LIGHTING

Waipa Post, Volume 32, Issue 1781, 10 July 1926, Page 5

COMMUNITY LIGHTING

AN UP-TO-DATE ENTERPRISE.

INNOVATION IN BUSINESS AREA

During the past few days the staff of the Te Awamutu Electric Power Board has been busily engaged, with Mr E.. Bryant directing operations, in providing an innovation that will surely prove beneficial as a business enterprise and also as a means of popularising the town as a residential centre. The scheme ,is for a community' system of lighting the exteriors of shop premises. It is proposed by the Board to provide and install at its own expense special wiring, fittings, and, reflectors. Instead of the lights going through a meter, they will be controlled by a time switch, and will be on from approximately dusk until midnight. Some of the 'other towns are also developing the scheme, notably Taihape and Cambridge, while Taumarunui and Tauranga are others that will probably have similar enterprises launched at an early date. The hours of lighting, and the charge to consumers, will of course vary, but we are informed that the low cost in Te Awamutu will compare more than favourably with any of them. Further, Te Awamutu is me first of the country towns to provide the community lighting system. Last evening the first section of the undertaking—the shopfronts between Market Street and the Farmers' Auctioneering Company's premises—were lighted, and certainty enhanced the attractiveness of the locality,, though we had lexpected that the lamps would be of greater *ndle power Perhaps those used last' night were temporary ones. The manager of the Power Board, informs us that the Plans provide for an extension of the project right to Goodall's corner (and probably down Arawata Street to the \dvance garage) on the one side and from Messrs C. T. Rickit's and Sons' hardware store, past, the post office, and down Alexandra Street probably as far as Messrs Clark and McMillan's, with also provision for the block in Sloane Street from Savills to the Empire Theatre. The Board undertakes to maintain the system, including lamp renewals, at its own expense, and the total cost to the consumer will we understand, be five shillings per month for each lamp. The limps will be of 400 candle-power, which will be of sufficient strength to give exce - lent illumination. The cost is so small that we feel sure local business people will at once adopt the Proposition If The scheme is taken up Practically unanimously, as it certainly should he the appearance of the town at night will be at once altered for the better. It present after the business premises are closed the town presents a somewhat unattractive appearance but f the community system of lighting is adonted widely this will be altered, ana the whole of the business area wUI le a flood of light, which will advertise the businesses so lightea, and thus result in increased trade. Mother point worthy of consideration is that with well-lighted business preSi2fthe danger from burglary is greatly lessened. This has been pioved fn the bigger towns and « regularly used as a precautionary measure, thus from the individual and community point of view the scheme has much to commend it, and we trust that it will be taken up heartily.