By the end of the week the main road and parking lot at the Cyril E. King Airport will be illuminated by brighter street lights, according to Carlton Dowe, executive director of the V.I. Port Authority.
A year ago the authority installed solar lighting on the airport’s approach road and in the parking lot. The cost of that project was $283,815, according to VIPA public information officer Monifa Marrero, and the units were installed by St. Thomas contractor Custom Builders.
But night travelers along with airport employees who worked late immediately noticed a difference, and they weren’t happy. They complained that the new lights simply weren’t bright enough, making the area unsafe.
"It was observed by our own staff," Marrero said. "The police, the staff that works at night and, of course, complaints from people coming and going at the airport, travelers. It was a safety issue."
VIPA arranged with the Water and Power Authority to replace half of the solar light fixtures on the road leading to CEKA and in the parking areas surrounding the terminal. Dowe said WAPA personnel are switching out every other solar unit and replacing them with the standard sodium vapor street lights. They are not using the newer LED systems, Marrero added.
Marrero said WAPA is installing the lights at no cost to VIPA. There will be higher cost in operating half the system with the standard lights, but it’s a tradeoff to have enough illumination to make the airport parking areas safe, she said.
Installation began a week ago and should be complete this week.
Dowe thanked WAPA’s Chief Executive Officer Hugo Hodge Jr. and the WAPA linemen for their quick response to the Port Authority’s request to assist with the correcting the problems with CEKA’s public roadway and parking lot light system.
