Washington (7News) – In an email thread with the District of Columbia, 7News was trying to determine what caused the street lighting outage in downtown DC and why it has taken so long to fix many of them.
In Chinatown, crime has increased and dozens of streetlights have gone out. 7News received some responses, but there is no timeline on when the outage of some lights will be fixed.
This month alone, more than 60 streetlights and floodlights have lost power in the area, including some around Capital One Arena, the courthouse and the National Archives subway station. In March, 7News reported a similar problem at the Kennedy Recreation Center, where there was a mass shooting outside. Days after the shooting, 7News documented several street lights that were out.
Terry Lynch of the Downtown Cluster of Congregations, a nonprofit advocacy group in D.C., has been lobbying city leaders.
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“It is the economic generator, it is night and yet we have dozens of streetlights out there. Look, I can’t have a police officer on every corner, but I can have street lights and their purpose is to be on,” Lynch said.
The group believes there is a direct correlation between dark blocks and crime. Last week, a new report emerged naming Capital One Arena as one of the 10 most dangerous sports venues in the country.
“It’s a no-brainer that these should be on at night. We all know we’ve seen what’s happening,” Lynch said. “The last thing we want is for a crime to happen there that could be prevented if these lights were on. “We need municipal and federal agencies to be proactive, not reactive.”
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Here’s how the Department of Transportation has responded.
“DDOT/the District is not responsible for the lights near the courthouses; those are the responsibility of the NPS. We know all the public lighting outages and we have prioritized them. Unfortunately, these need major repairs, so we can’t do it right away, but we have directed our contractor to focus on them,” wrote Sharon Kershbaum, acting director of the District’s Department of Transportation.
7News has reached out to the National Park Service and is waiting to hear back.
There are now more police cars parked around the Arena during events. Residents are encouraged to call 311 to report any outages or use the link here.
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