Council strikes compromise on lighting for Texas Avenue

Whitefish City Council last week voted unanimously to approve the final design and authorize staff to go out for bids on the second phase of the Texas Avenue reconstruction project. 

The final lighting plan for the project became a point of discussion after several residents of the street said they wanted to keep a more rural feel to their neighborhood meaning without street lights. 

Council ultimately selected a plan that places street lights at the intersections and smaller bollard lights in between. The final lighting plan is similar to the one used in the Lone Pine subdivision. 

Three residents told Council during last week’s meeting that they are against street lights. They said they wanted to maintain the rural character of the neighborhood.

“The bases for bollards are the same as they are for street lights which provides an option to react to changing conditions if the need for additional light is identified at some point in time,” Tim Salt told Council.                        

The city sent out over 140 questionnaires to find out what kind of lighting the resident preferred and only 22 responses were returned. The form presented four options for lighting, all of which involved standard decorative street lights. Some options included bollard lights either for part of the stretch or for the entire span.

According to the staff report, “In general, most respondents preferred bollard lights on timers.”

Dissatisfaction was voiced over the questionnaires because all the options included street lights and many of the residents queried did not know what bollard lights are. Bollard lights are post-style lighting fixtures 2 to 4 feet high that provide lighting for pathways.

Councilor Frank Sweeney reiterated his previous statement that Whitefish is a small town with a history of being rural and doesn’t need to have street lights everywhere in town. 

“I don’t think we need to be running street lights out Texas,” he said. 

The second phase of the project involves the stretch of Texas Avenue from Edgewood north to Denver Street. It has many components: a wider road with vertical face curbs, a new stormwater system and a bike/walking path.

Public Works Director Craig Workman said at previous meetings that the priority of the street project is to enhance driver and pedestrian safety through roadway improvements, street lighting, intersection improvements and improved pedestrian accommodations. 

When the council met in early November, it approved the street project but waited to make a final decision on whether the standard street lights would be included. 

After more deliberation about the spacing of lights and the interchangeable nature of the bases for both standard street lights and bollards, the Council struck the final compromise of both street lights and bollard lights but spaced farther apart than is typical for bollard lights. 

Texas Avenue is considered an “urban collector.” Roadways with this designation are usually 32 feet wide but the city determined that Texas Avenue should be 26 feet wide. It will have vertical-faced curbs and a shared-use path along its west side.    

The staff report notes that a new stormwater system is proposed to be installed in Texas Avenue that will connect to the recently constructed storm sewer in Edgewood Place.

There is also a landscaping component to this project. Property owners will have an opportunity to select a tree from the approved list when the time comes.

The water main and sewer lines will remain and parts replaced only if deemed necessary after an inspection.

The cost for the second phase is estimated at $2.8 million. The resort tax fund is paying for the project.

Work is set to begin in early May and is expected to last about 150 days.