'Historic Enlightenment' in Portland Parks

Sept. 9, 2024.
By: Fred Leeson

New light and pole, Irving Park

The Portland Bureau of Parks and Recreation is nearing the end of a project to replace 250 light poles in 12 city parks, using new poles and lights that substantially replicate the design of predecessors that ranged up to 100 years old.

The scope of the project ranges from 88 lights in Mt. Tabor Park and 65 in Irving Park, down to four in Ladd Circle.  While the new lights look like the old ones, they are lit with LED lights that a said to be 66 percent more efficient and bear sensors that automatically turn them on at dusk and off at dawn.  Most of the poles have been installed already; the remainder are scheduled to be finished by year’s end.

In addition, the fixtures are designed to be “dark sky friendly,” meaning that the lights are restricted from sending light into the sky or bothering nearby residences.  While some LED lights can be glaringly white, the new installations offer a warmer, creamier nighttime glow.

Historic fixture at the AHC

Trouble with the old light poles became an issue in June, 2022, when a babysitter and a young boy were resting in a hammock they had attached to a tree and a light pole, causing the pole to topple. A city investigation concluded that dozens of the old poles were inadequately secured near the ground. (It should be noted that attaching anything to a park light pole is a violation of the Portland City Code.)

While nothing required the city to seek new poles and fixtures that looked comparable to the old ones, the decision carries an implicit suggestion that our parks have been important public spaces for decades. The welcome historical symbolism suggests that the parks have been vital places for public recreation and respite for a long time – and should remain so for many decades to come.

Fred Leeson is a former president of the Bosco-Milligan Foundation and a member of the foundation's Board of Advisors.