City of Duluth to Implement New Lighting Policy

-The city of Duluth is announcing a change to its street lighting policy regarding the “color temperature” of lighting – that is, what color the light source appears to the human eye.

DULUTH, Minn.-The city of Duluth is announcing a change to its street lighting policy regarding the “color temperature” of lighting – that is, what color the light source appears to the human eye.

New residential streetlights installed within the Duluth will have a color temperature of 2700K. This excludes lights at controlled intersections.

As part of efforts to reduce energy usage, many cities have converted streetlights to LED technology. In Duluth, Minnesota Power installed new, downward-facing 4000K fixtures in residential neighborhoods as old light fixtures stopped working.

“The 4000K streetlights appeared noticeably white compared with conventional high-pressure sodium lights, which look more yellow and have a color temperature of 2200K, and prompted concerns and questions from residents,” the city said in a statement.

This policy change follows two years of public input, in conjunction with Imagine Duluth 2035 and the Superior Street Reconstruction Project, as well as input on other development and transportation projects.

“We appreciate Minnesota Power working with the city of Duluth on both our community conversations and the pilot project we conducted in 2018 to see on-the-ground demonstrations of different lighting options,” said Keith Hamre, director of the planning and economic development department. “This change responds to in-depth input from our community, which prioritizes Dark Sky initiatives in recognition of our important natural resources.”