By now you’ve probably noticed the new streetlights in Boulder Creek. Double acorn,
old fashioned looking lights fitting for this old mountain town with its rustic architecture.
To me, they are so much more than lights. These lights are an example of how a small community with a strong connection to its historic roots banded together to make government work with them and for them. This core group of people was determined, persistent, tenacious, and committed. They got it right.
The street light saga started several years before I took office. Pacific Gas and Electric Company had a program swapping out old rotting wood light poles with safer poles and lights. They offered the usual cobra style lights and wanted an answer from each town within a few days. Other communities in Santa Cruz County said “Fine, go ahead.” The Boulder Creek Business Association said, “Not so fast.”
Business Association members pointed to the Boulder Creek Town Plan that called for historic fixtures, which was reasonable but complicated. Boulder Creek’s downtown is essentially in a Caltrans corridor, which means that nothing happens without that agency’s approval.
After the initial round of negotiations and project scoping by PG&E and the County, the project was approved by the then Board of Supervisors in September of 2012.
The next step was to gain Caltrans approval for installation of the new streetlights. PG&E agreed to install decorative poles as requested by the community. However, Caltrans considered this new construction and imposed modern accessibility code requirements. That meant that several of the streetlight locations needed to be moved, adjusted, or modified in some manner to meet current standards.
Some of the adjustments involved minor relocations, while others involved significant relocations and reconstruction of sidewalks and curb ramps to meet the standards. Even the small relocations were not simple, as most of the downtown Boulder Creek Highway 9 corridor was built many years before today’s modern accessibility standards.
Downtown Boulder Creek had its utilities undergrounded many years ago in ducts underneath the existing sidewalks. This made relocating and modifying the street light locations as required by Caltrans very challenging. There were also questions of whether the acorn lights would provide enough light to meet Caltrans requirements. This was studied, and more lights were added.
While all of this was playing out, PG&E’s funding for the project ran out and it was uncertain whether that pot of money would be replenished in the new funding cycle.
Steve Wiesner, County Public Works Department, took the lead in coordinating between PG&E, Caltrans, and the County. We had at least four different “pole” walks involving members of the Boulder Creek Business Association, PG&E, Caltrans, and the County. We walked and talked about every single light pole. Wiesner helped push talks by providing engineering designs to PG&E that would be permitted by Caltrans.
What you see today are not just new streetlights. What you see is a civics lesson in diplomacy, tenacity, and coordinating the competing interests of government agencies. I want to thank Caltrans, PG&E, County Public Works, the Boulder Creek Business Association, and everyone else who helped shed the light on this project.
