City Installs New Lights in Storer Park Next to Hunter House

NEWPORT, RI—Three new lights have been pole-mounted in Storer Park, not too far from the former topiary, which city workers cut down last May, causing a public outcry.

Scott Wheeler, Newport's tree warden, said Wednesday the city installed the light-emitting diode (LED) lamps primarily for public safety, "to address concerns by neighbors and park users."

Previously, Wheeler had cited complaints about homeless people sleeping and urinating in the park and using the privet hedge topiary as a screen.

The lights are stationed on the edge of the sidewalk, across from the privet hedge, adjacent to the Preservation Society's Hunter House.

The new decorative lights are temporary and on black wooden poles, which city workers "fabricated and installed," he said. But the wiring and the underground conduit are permanent, so these lights ultimately can be replaced.

Ultimately, the plan is to go with with "standard “Newporter” lamps on cast iron poles to match the gas lights on Washington Street when future funding is available," he said.

The new lights cost the city $5,750, not including "in-house" labor and equipment, he said. The Public Works Department did the work on the service panel and the underground electrical conduit. Toner Electric, the city's contractor, handled the wiring, the lights' installation and the new electrical service.