Sara Felts's blog

So, according to tonight's Post Bulletin, RPU may need to raise its rates to restore its reserves. Now, I understand that many energy-saving practices have been encouraged by RPU as Rochester has been growing. But, maybe there is more to do. I, for one, like to see the stars at night. Bright lights over at the Kwik Trip, "safety" lights that shine in your eyes as you pass certain buildings, and brightly lighted empty buildings and/or parking lots just make me crazy. Has anyone ever seen the NASA photo taken of the earth at night? Talk about wasting energy!! All that light shining out to space is NOT helping us read the paper at night or keep prowlers at bay. I live in a newer area of town. My "old" neighborhood had just the right number of street lights...you know, the ones at the corner so you can maybe read the street names! My "new" neighborhood is lit up like a Christmas tree. In fact, there is so much light on the street that outdoor Christmas lights cannot really be appreciated! I say we take out 2 out of every 3 street lights in the newer areas of town. Make all lights that remain shine DOWN. And, turn the dimmers down on a lot more. I bet we'd still stay safe, and save electricity too. By the way, does anyone know how much the city of Rochester spends per year installing, maintaining, and paying electricity to light all these street lights?