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CHICAGO (CBS) — The Metropolis of Chicago is spending $160 million changing a whole bunch of hundreds of streetlights from low-efficiency bulbs to LEDs – and that doesn’t sit properly with a Portage Park girl who has been making an attempt to get her previous streetlights again up and working for months.
She reached out to us for assist, and CBS 2’s Marie Saavedra went digging Tuesday.
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“While you go from one road that’s well-lit to 1 road that’s half-lit, it makes a giant distinction,” stated Benita Pennie.
Pennie has spent virtually 30 years on the identical block of Belle Plaine Avenue within the Portage Park group. However for the primary time, the home-owner has been feeling left at nighttime.
“It’s like town has forgotten us,” Pennie stated.
Final summer season, she acquired a letter warning of water foremost work on her road, close to Laramie Avenue and Irving Park Street. Metropolis crews eliminated a number of streetlights for development, however Pennie says when challenge completed in February, they nonetheless weren’t changed.
“It’s not like I simply ignored it and didn’t name and let anyone know,” she stated.
She known as her alderman and 311. Throughout the final month, she stated two everlasting streetlights confirmed up, and her 311 grievance confirmed it was accomplished.
However Pennie insists it’s not.
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“Doesn’t anyone notice there’s speculated to be two extra?” she stated.
To see the difficulty when it actually issues, we got here again right here at night time. The view from Pennie’s finish of the block trying eastward exhibits for itself that it’s considerably darker the place her streetlight was.
For her, it’s a security subject. A deadly shooting happened at her nook in December when the lights have been out.
“For that to occur right here at 7 o’clock on a Saturday is type of distressing,” Pennie stated.
So we reached out to the Chicago Division of Transportation for solutions. Not lengthy after, somebody from town confirmed up on the road to have a look at the spots the place lights was.
“I’m not asking for one thing particular,” Pennie stated. “I’m simply asking for them to place again after they took.”
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And it appears they lastly will. A CDOT spokesman advised us the ultimate two streetlights will probably be changed subsequent week, to return Belle Plaine Avenue again to its former brightness.
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