Sedona residents again lit up over lights at the Sedona City Council meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 28, but there was little focus on the topic — 68 lighting options presented by the Arizona Department of Transportation.

In his opening statement, Sedona Mayor Rob Adams said City Council would not make a decision on lighting — the intent was for ADOT to offer information and ask for feedback on the 68 options.

“This isn’t about lights or no lights, it’s about pedestrian safety,” Adams said.

“We’re looking for feedback from you and the public so we can come back with the alternatives,” ADOT Flagstaff District Engineer John Harper said.

Councilman Cliff Hamilton openly spoke out against the lights and spent the first half of the meeting asking ADOT officials about project particulars.

All the fixtures are dark-skies compliant, according to the manufacturers, hence the reason they were selected for the project, said ADOT Traffic Engineering Group Consultant Seth Chalmers.

“Dark sky compliant” means that a light fixture does

not emit light above a

90-degree angle.

Councilman Dan Surber asked whether ADOT would restore landscaping.

Harper said ADOT could negotiate with contractors so that any landscaping affected would have to be restored as was negotiated on the State Route 179 Improvement Project.

For his final question, Hamilton asked ADOT

engineers, “What would

happen if the city withdrew its funding or support from the project?”

If council rejected the project, Harper said, ADOT would move forward on its own and build the streetlights according to its standard without city input.

The ADOT standard used elsewhere in Arizona would be 35-foot tall light poles with Cobra fixture heads on 20-foot arms, spaced a maximum of 355 feet part. There would be approximately 65 lights

built to the standard. ADOT would pay for installation and power.

On the other end of the spectrum for options, lower Monterey Poles fixtures could be as low as 20 feet tall with a 2.5-foot arm spaced a maximum of 125 feet apart. The city would be responsible for upkeep.

“[State Route] 89A is a state highway,” Councilwoman Nancy Scagnelli said. “We do not own it or control it; ADOT does. They are legally responsible to provide a safe highway.”

Councilwoman Pud Colquitt said that the city would rather work with ADOT every step of the way through the design process so there won’t be any surprises.

Public Forum

While 23 residents spoke during the public forum, how to improve safety along State Route 89A was more elusive. Most said they still wanted the lights taken off the table.

“If these lights go in, it will be a monument to stupidity,” Sedona resident Dick Ellis said. “Who wants the credit?”

“We want your alternatives on the 68 lighting options,” Harper reminded the crowd.

While the public comments spoke out against installing any lights whatsoever, alternatives for safety varied. Many also complained that the streetlight at Andante was not yet installed.

Other speakers said traffic problems had been negated since improvements have been implemented.

Dmitri Wagner, owner of the now-defunct Casa Rincon restaurant, said since his bar near Andante and the one across the highway are gone, the problem no longer exists.

Although Casa Rincon business is gone, other bars or nightspots could appear in the future, Harper said.

Cliff Oscher, president of the Sedona branch of International Dark Skies Association, said he and other residents would work to elect council members against streetlights, engage in public protest, and possibly sue ADOT. He said he had already retained legal council.

“We’re here tonight to discuss the 68 lighting alternatives,” Harper said again.

Colquitt reminded the crowd the lighting proposal began because of a petition started by a witness to a pedestrian death near Andante Drive. The petition garnered more than 1,000 signatures.

“Things change,” Colquitt said. “You’re going to have to come to terms with responsibility.”

Colquitt said the other focus had to be the budget.

“This is not our biggest problem. We have streets in this town that have not been touched since incorporation,” she said. “If we took over the highway, it would break the city’s back We took over 6/10ths of a mile in Uptown and that was $3.5 million. How much do you think two miles will cost?”

In his last meeting before his official resignation, Vice Mayor John Bradshaw asked ADOT for some “wiggle room,” considering a council election was nearing.

When candidates run for office on a single issue, the city suffers, he said.

Christopher Fox Graham can be reached at 282-7795, ext. 129, or cgraham@larsonnewspapers.com