Campus Operations came away with an abundance of project ideas after its annual Campus Night Safety Walk Thursday evening.
About 20 people, comprised mostly of representatives from the University of Oregon Police Department and Campus Operations, showed up to offer suggestions about which areas on campus need better lighting.
After a short presentation on proposed locations for new light fixtures on campus led by Garrick Mishaga, the exterior team supervisor for Campus Operations, attendees were given the opportunity to point out any areas they felt were problematic.
Here is a list of possible locations up for lighting adjustments:
– Near the dumpsters outside the Lillis Business Complex
– 12th and Kincaid, near McKenzie Hall
– Sorority row on Alder Street
– University Street near the MacArthur Court and Pioneer Cemetery
The event concluded with a walk to all the areas of concern on campus.
Mishaga said that ideas from this event make up almost all of CO’s project plans for the year. Though the bulk of the tasks taken on by CO involve replacing lights and lighting fixtures, UOPD takes suggestions for added security measures from the meeting as well.
The university has spent upwards of $100,000 uprooting light fixtures and replacing old bulbs with bright LEDs in the last two years.
But sometimes the most concerning spots are those that the university has no control over – like the Pioneer Cemetery. Though it appears integrated with campus, the university does not actually own the grounds.
Tim King, a representative for the cemetery and former CO employee, said that while a few accommodations have been made in response to university requests (trimming of branch limbs and shrubbery to make hiding in the dark more difficult), there are “major restrictions” involved with adding any lighting to the area.
“The cemetery has a budget of about $6,000 a year. That wouldn’t even pay for one fixture,” said King.
The owners of the cemetery have also expressed concern that lighting might encourage more traffic to the area at night, said King.
CO has worked around these restrictions in the past by making sure the pathways around the cemetery’s perimeter are lined with light fixtures.
Though limits exist to what the university can do about Safety Walk suggestions, King said that the event has managed to stay alive (despite periods of waning participation) for two decades because of a “can do” attitude.
“Money’s always tight, but we make it work,” he said.
If you still haven’t taken the Emerald’s poll about which spots on campus you think are worth fixing, you can here.