SAN DIEGO — There is some controversy in the Kensington neighborhood over its antique street lamps. The city of San Diego plans to replace more than 50 of the street lights, because officials said the lights are no longer reliable or safe.
People who live there tell us they are on both sides of the fence.
Peter Dennehey, a Kensington resident, said, “Love the lamppost, they are a unique.”
Passing through the Kennsington neighborhood, you cannot miss the rows of antique lampposts anchored in front of homes. They are currently decorated for the holidays, but with a “SAVE ME” sign posted to some of them.
“They’re a part of the community,” Dennehey said.
Built in 1926, the city plans to replace all of these street lights. City officials point to the peeling lead based paint with an outdated circuitry that causes outages.
The city would put in a lookalike that is more efficient with its own circuit connection.
“If one light goes out they all go out and that’s a problem,” explained Dennehey. “We have to have both — they have too be working, that light up, but we all love the look and feel of them.”
City councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera represents the Kensington area. In a statement he said, “The new streetlights planned for the Kensington neighborhood address concerns that residents have had for over a decade. With approval from community representatives during the planning process, this is the best long-term solution for efficiently maintaining lighting and safety while preserving the neighborhood’s unique community character.”
The city said it is possible they will replace antique lamppost in other neighborhoods like South Park, Mission Hills, La Jolla Shores, Talmadge and others.
Nicole Stone has lived in the Talmadge area for several years.
“We should approve the designs, obviously some stuff is kind of beaten up down there and the top of the fixture seems like something that should be able to be preserved,” said Stone. “So I think it’s a kind of meet in the middle thing.”
“Hope they (City of San Diego) take the time listen to the neighbors and see if there might be, compromise,” Dennehey said. “There are not big bright lights, but that’s kind of a nice thing. These are quite little neighborhoods. Maybe something brighter, but again everyone should agree on it.”