New LED streetlights will save over $160,000 annually in energy and maintenance costs
NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
(Gloucester, MA) – Mayor Sefatia Romeo Theken announced today that Seimens has begun to install nearly 3,000 new energy efficient LED streetlights and floodlights in the city. The full project installation will result in at least $160,000 in annual energy and maintenance savings, reduce energy usage by two-thirds compared to existing streetlights, and provide citizens with clearer lighting conditions to improve visibility and safety. The project is also expected to be eligible for approximately $224,000 in National Grid energy efficiency incentive funds to help offset project costs.
“The new LED streetlights are part of our on-going work to improve city infrastructure while saving money and doing the right thing for the planet,” Mayor Romeo Theken stated.
Marcy Reed, president of National Grid in Massachusetts, stated, “National Grid encourages all of the cities and towns we serve, as well as individual customers, to take advantage of opportunities to cut energy costs by being more efficient. We applaud the City of Gloucester for taking these steps to pursue energy savings on behalf of their residents and we are proud to be a part of the project.”
The agreement allows Siemens to remove the existing streetlights and install the new, more energy efficient LED lights. Siemens will also guarantee the amount of energy savings the City will realize each year for the next ten years. The new LED fixtures, installed by Siemens electricians, have been carefully selected to provide the appropriate amount of lighting for various locations across the city and focus light directly downward on the sidewalks and roadway. The fixtures, supplied by Leotek, were the preferred fixture based on public feedback from last fall, and are the 3,000K, warmer type of LED. They have a ten-year product warranty, but are anticipated to have a much longer life.
Procurement for the installation was coordinated by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, (MAPC), which since 2013 has helped more than 20 communities combine their buying power, share technical resources and select a contractor to perform the LED streetlight retrofit work.
“MAPC is dedicated to helping our municipalities reduce greenhouse gas emissions and energy costs, and we are proud to have helped the City of Gloucester take this significant step forward,” said Cameron Peterson, MAPC Clean Energy Manager. A portion of project funding was obtained through a grant from the State’s “Green Communities” program.
“Green Communities funding is designed to support just this kind of project,” said the Department of Energy Resources Commissioner Judith Judson. “High efficiency streetlight change-outs utilize innovative technology to reduce energy consumption and ultimately save communities money while providing clearer lighting.”
“We’re proud to be a technology partner for the City of Gloucester to bring new LED streetlights that will not only help the city reduce energy costs and become more efficient, but provide residents with more effective lighting that can result in a safer community,” said Steve Gitkin, head of sales for Siemens Mobility Intelligent Traffic Systems.
The City of Gloucester streetlight project is slated for completion in June 2016.
About the City of Gloucester
America’s oldest seaport, the City of Gloucester is known throughout the world as an authentic, working waterfront community, a place of spectacular natural beauty, and home to a diverse population of about 30,000 residents. An important center for the fishing industry, Gloucester also is proud of its vibrant cultural life and rich art heritage as one of the premier art colonies in the United States. In addition, the city is a destination for thousands of visitors who visit the harbor and its beaches during the summertime. In recent years, Gloucester has been actively diversifying its traditional maritime economy, adding leading small research institutions such as the UMass Amherst Large Pelagics Research Laboratory and the Ocean Alliance to the array of local businesses and state and federal agencies working in the city. Recent advancements in Gloucester include new investments in marine robotics and new product development from the fishery.
