The Shenandoah City Council voted April 10 to acquire three solar-powered street lights for a trial program to determine whether to install the solar-powered lights throughout Shenandoah Valley.

HDR Claunch & Miller, an engineering firm, provided the council a design plan at the meeting to add 71 street lights to the Shenandoah Vally neighborhood, estimated to cost $715,000. The plan was a significant readjustment from the nearly $1.8 million plan provided by the firm in February to the council, but the number of lights and other changes were made to keep the project under budget.

Shenandoah City Administrator Greg Smith said funding for the project comes from leftover bond proceeds from the construction of Shenandoah Valleys 1, 2 and 3. Smith said the original budget for the project was $1.1 million–$1.2 million and the remaining funds can only be spent in those neighborhoods.

The city discovered the concept of using solar panels to light the LED lights about 45 days ago and has since studied the idea, Smith said. Using solar panels to light the 71 street lights would cost the city about $40,000 less, would eliminate about $2,000–$3,000 in annual electricity costs, would not require additional engineering and could eliminate the need to damage residents yards or install power boxes near their homes, Smith said.

The lights would also stay on during power outages and could take anywhere from 2–3 weeks to install, compared to a longer construction period for traditional street lights.

While council members expressed concerns about cloud coverage and possible weather damage, Smith said the batteries attached to the solar panels were able to stay on for 30 hours with a black plastic bag covering the panels. The panels are also capable of withstanding 3-inch hale pieces and 130-mile-per-hour winds, but could be removed prior to a hurricane, Smith said.

"I like the project; I remember going seven long days during Hurricane Ike without streetlights," Mayor Wes Stephens said. "It's very appealing to me to have lights on the streets when the power is out."

Smith said he would like to test the lights more and give residents a chance to view the lights with the solar panels before spending nearly $700,000 on the project. The council unanimously approved the trial plan, requesting a solar-powered light be temporarily installed in each of the three neighborhoods. However, the council expressed interest in the project, including Stephens, who said solar power is a technology he would like to see the city employ.

"I like the idea of solar, because we're not tearing up yards again and there's no electrical [components]," Councilman Darrell Frazier said.