A Brighter USU Eastern

This archived article was written by: Daniel Pike

If you have walked across campus after dark in the last 10 years, at times you may have needed an escort or a flashlight.
Many renovations and additions are taking place on campus at USU Eastern, some of which include installing new outdoor lighting hardware. This facilities project, funded with capital improvement dollars, was undertaken with the goals of “ensuring safety for students and staff, as well as improving campus curb appeal,” notes Associate Vice Chancellor of Business Services, Eric Mantz.
Mantz explained, the $350,000 project, which is being completed by Logan-based contractor, Lundahl Building Systems, has begun and is slated for “completion by the end of spring, if not sooner.”
In the past, students and staff complained that the outdoor lighting conditions on campus are unsatisfactory and unsafe for those traversing campus after dark due to lights being out or damaged by other means. The existing outdoor light fixtures have been in place since Mantz came on board 21 years ago.
Insufficient lighting after dark is a cause for concern for obvious reasons; so improving our lighting situation is high on the list of priorities for USUE’s Business Services Department.
“While most of the light fixtures are simply worn out and in a state of disrepair from normal use over the years,” Mantz said, “There are some fixtures which appear to have been damaged by Frisbee golfers.” These fixtures will either be repaired or replaced altogether with new Philips UrbanScape outdoor fixtures.
The new lighting fixtures, Mantz said, were chosen by USU and USU Eastern Facilities Departments.
Mantz relates that the new Philips fixtures were chosen, “Because they have LED lights, which will be more cost and energy efficient, add to campus appeal, as well as ensure maximum safety for current and future students and staff.”
Mantz speculates that this “greener approach” to illuminating campus can significantly cut maintenance and energy costs, and the savings will help in paying for itself as well as aid in any future lighting costs. Some other key points in the lighting selection were the elegant design and dramatically lower light pollution rating (“zero percent uplight”), which is good news for students and staff who utilize the observatory facilities in the McDonald Career Center.
In a joint effort between Price and Logan campuses, 66 new fixtures will be installed on the Price campus, all of which are intended to “begin creating a consistent, streamlined appearance across the entire campus,” Mantz said.
“The new fixtures, some of which will be mounted onto new concrete bases, will have LED lights on newer poles with seamless, low-profile banner mounts; so we won’t see any more hose-clamps on the light poles.”
Throughout this entire undertaking, one thing is clear, the future of students and staff on the Price campus is looking brighter all the time.