Westville Neighbors: The Park’s Too Dark

by Dereen Shirnekhi The New Haven independent

WVRA’s Lizzy Donius and Parks Director Max Webster at a post-parks commission meeting field trip to check out Edgewood Park lighting.

Westville business owner John Cavaliere joined neighbors on Wednesday for a pitch to the city’s parks commission: Add more lamp posts to Edgewood Park, between the tennis courts and West Rock Avenue.

That way, customers can feel more comfortable using the public greenspace’s free parking and walking back to their cars at night — and park-goers can feel more comfortable, too.

The problem, however, is finding the money to make that new lighting happen.

Cavaliere owns Lyric Hall, which doubles as both an antique restoration studio and a theater, at 827 Whalley Ave. He was among attendees at the Commission on Parks, Programs, & Recreational Facilities’ monthly meeting on Wednesday, held at 720 Edgewood Ave.

After the closure of the Bow Tie Cinema downtown left New Haven without a movie theater, Cavaliere began collaborating with Hamden film store and arts venue Best Video to host movie screenings at Lyric Hall. But, Cavaliere told commissioners, some attendees have complained about “the p-word.”

“People think there isn’t enough parking,” he said. With the park, “we have this beautiful asset across the street.”

There’s a lot for cars right at the park’s entrance off of West Rock Avenue. The problem is, “it’s really dark,” Cavaliere said.

While there are button-activated lights that illuminate the tennis courts, there’s only one lamp post between the courts and that part of Whalley and West Rock Avenue. That means it gets much darker at night when moving in that direction — where cars are parked.

But on the other side of the courts, after the bridge and near Coogan Pavilion, where there’s another parking lot, there’s more lighting.

“Near Coogan there’s some vintage lamp posts,” said Cavaliere. “It would be so neat if they could dot the path to the gazebo.”

Cavaliere said the improvements would help other nearby businesses as well, like Rawa and Manjares.

He was joined at Wednesday’s parks commission meeting by fellow Westville neighbors who agreed with the need for better lighting, including Westville Village Renaissance Alliance (WVRA) Executive Director Lizzy Donius. “We spruce this up if we make it a little safer at night,” she said.

Sharon Lovett-Graff said that the pickleball courts are often full of people taking part in the sport, even as late as 10 p.m. She said she sees them walk to their cars at the parking lot on the other side of the bridge because the path is lit up. “The one adjacent is dark,” she said.

Kate Bradley noted that improving the lighting and updating wiring and poles would benefit the events that take place at Edgewood park and require electricity, “including Artwalk.” As is, many of those events require backup generators.

“We’re asking for the stars, we realize that,” Cavaliere said.

Emily Sigman (left) alongside Carl Babb and Kenya Adams-Martin: Make sure parks are safe, and also make sure people can still be in the dark if they want to see stars.

Commissioner Mary Ann Moran asked whether there are any lights inside Edgewood Park.

Parks Director Max Webster said that there are lights around Coogan Pavilion, outside the ranger station, and button-activated lights at the tennis courts. There are some street lights close to the park, he said, but the department doesn’t control them. “Beyond that, there’s not much.”

“The [lights] at Quinnipiac River Park are beautiful,” Moran noted.

While lights would theoretically be fine, Webster said, in some areas of the park, “lights do have a detrimental effect on wildlife,” like insects and birds hunting at night.

Webster said that he conceptually agrees with the pitch for more lighting — but that it will come down to the wiring and cost needs.

To add new lamp posts, the city’s engineers would need to take a look at what’s feasible for the electrical wiring, and how much digging would need to be done.

Financially, Webster said that in its capital projects fund, the parks department has $800,000 for two years — money that needs to span all of the city’s parks.

“That’s not a lot,” Cavaliere said. He offered Lyric Hall hosting a fundraiser for the park.

“How about we start with necessities,” suggested commission Chair Carl Babb, then add more when it’s financially viable?

Webster said that there were “potentially some low-cost and ready-to-implement” options. “But adding 20 new light poles…”

“How can we not only light this place up, but light it up in a way that is atmospheric?” said Commissioner Emily Sigman. Could they imagine lights on a string? Lights that are human-sized? Lights that are yellow and not a bright, white light on a pole?

“Our parks broadly really deserve better lighting,” she said.

Still, she said that there’s a tough balance between letting people feel safe and also letting people be in the dark. As someone who likes astronomy, she said, “I can’t find that hardly anywhere in this city.”

Westville neighbors then led commissioners and parks department officials to see the lighting for themselves at Edgewood Park.

Carl Babb and Sharon Lovett-Graff check out lamp posts in the better-lit part of Edgewood Park.