Appeal by St. John's Woods HOA over 10 street lights deferred after council asks for traffic and precedent data

Miss Copeland, representing city staff, opened the appeal by explaining that under the city's street-lighting policy boulevard lighting (rights-of-way over 200 feet with no residences fronting the street) is usually the responsibility of adjacent homeowners associations and that Mr. Cardo's request to shift electric-bill responsibility to the city was denied under that policy.

Mr. Cardo (treasurer, St. John's Woods Homeowners Association) told the committee that the neighborhood has changed in the last few years: the earlier dead-end parkway now connects through to Bohickey, a small shopping center and two restaurants have opened at the entrance, and the street is serving as a thoroughfare and cut-through between Bohickey and Maybank. He argued that those changes increase non-resident use and parking pressure and asked the city to assume the electric charges for the 10 lantern-style pole lights the HOA has paid for about 20 years.

Council members and staff asked whether there are precedents for the city taking over boulevard lighting when a street becomes more of a through-route and whether traffic counts could show the change in use. Rodney Porter (parks staff) said he could not recall the city having taken over boulevard lighting in a similar situation. Councilors asked staff to research precedent and to gather traffic-count data that could substantiate a change-of-use claim.

After discussion, the council voted to defer the appeal to the next meeting to allow staff time to provide traffic counts, precedent examples and further information that would inform a final decision.