LED lights brighten downtown Oxford, Macomb County

Thursday, July 22, 2010 | Source: Metromode

Downtown Oxford and a Macomb County warehouse will be a little bit brighter and more energy-efficient at the same time.

The village of Oxford will be converting 83 existing streetlights in its downtown to energy-efficient LED globe fixtures from Relume Technologies. The project is partially funded by a Michigan Economic Development Corporation Downtown Urban Revitalization Grant.

The bulbs are expected to save about $8,000 annually in energy and maintenance costs. The outdoor LED lights use less than half of the energy of a conventional streetlight and can last up to six times longer, which leads to an average payback on the investment in less than four years.

Madonna Van Fossen, director of the Oxford Downtown Development Authority, explains that the close proximity of Relume's headquarters drove the village's decision to secure LED lighting. "That's one of the goals in Oxford: to be a totally green community," she says.

The LED lights will be radio controlled, the first in the world with that technology, she says. "Since Relume is right here, it’s going to be huge for Oxford, the exposure that we're going to get."

Van Fossen says the lights should be in place by the end of the month. "The goal is to have the whole DDA district lit with LED lighting," she says.

In Macomb County, a warehouse on Hall Road has had 180 high-intensity discharge lighting fixtures replaced with energy-efficient fixtures from Alumalight. Also, occupancy sensors were installed to turn the lights off in an area that is not in use.

That lighting upgrade is expected to reduce energy usage and cost by half, saving more than $9,000 annually. It was funded in part by a $14,000 rebate from DTE.

Source: Macomb County and Madonna Van Fossen, director of the Oxford Downtown Development Authority
Writer: Kristin Lukowski