Monterey Exploring LED Street Lights

The town of Monterey could save a bunch of money by switching to LED lighting.

Mayor Bill Wiggins said he’s studying the idea of replacing current city street lights with LED lighting.

Wiggins said the utility bill for the 349 city street lights costs about $70,000 per year.

“Some research has shown that we could probably slash that bill more than half if we had LED,” Wiggins said. “We are exploring the possibility of how we can get that accomplished.”

Not just street lights, but LED lighting installations for city buildings as well, Wiggins said.

“I find it my job as mayor to continually look at ways to increase our efficiency and cut cost,” Wiggins said. “It gives us an opportunity to address other pressing issues like paving streets.”

The mayor has recently met with companies involved with helping transition to LED. One company he spoke with has taken on similar projects in Rockwood and Paris Tennessee.

Wiggins said the expense to conduct such a project will come into play when making a final decision.

“It’s not a matter of just screwing in an LED bulb, but the utility company will have to take down what’s there and install new heads,” Wiggins said. “That’s where the expenditure comes in, with the equipment and the labor.”

If Monterey decides to install LED lighting, the project would not be funded until the 2019-2020 fiscal year.