October 2012 - Parks & Recreation - 80

operations
" People have noticed a big difference
in lighting levels, " Zehnder concurs.
" People feel a lot more secure and safe...
It's a good situation. "

Sahuarita before and after

Playing HORSE with a Light
of a Different Color
The Town of Sahuarita, Arizona, near
Tucson, also recently installed magnetic
induction lights in parks, parking lots, a
water reclamation facility, and the town
hall municipal center parking area. One
of the major beneﬁts has been the improved quality of the light, even though
the lamps use far less energy. The town
partnered with Phoenix-based company Brown Wholesale, a division of
WESCO Distribution; Curtis Moldenhauer of EDG Reps, Fulham; WDI International, Ltd.; and local electrician
" Lennie's Electric " to install its mix of
magnetic induction lights.
" We just completed the basketball and
volleyball courts in one of our parks, "
says Parks and Facilities Manager Brian De Breceny. " The original lighting
was 400-watt high-pressure sodium,
and we replaced those with 200-watt
magnetic induction. That's a 50 percent reduction in consumable watts,
though we are actually seeing a savings of more than 59 percent due to
the energy-efficient equipment, and
the light is more like daylight. "
In this joint effort between the Sahuarita parks department and public
works, De Breceny credits Engineering Technician Thomas Garcia in the
public works department for researching and recommending magnetic induction lights and securing grant
funding from the Arizona Governor's
Office of Energy Policy for the project. Some lights were retroﬁtted by reusing the ﬁxture heads and replacing
the inside with a retroﬁt kit, while retroﬁtting other lights, such as those at
the sports courts, involved completely
78

Parks & Recreation

changing out the ﬁxture head. De Breceny estimates the cost for the latter retroﬁt at $400 to $500 each but notes that
each will pay for itself rather quickly in
energy savings and will last years longer than the usual two- to three-year
lifespan of sodium lights under typical
usage in Sahuarita's parks. The magnetic induction lights utilize only a trace
amount of contained mercury, which
can be easily and properly disposed of
when replaced, and use a single electronic generator instead of a ballast,
igniter, and capacitor.
De Breceny and Garcia have seen
between a 40- to 80-percent reduction
in energy consumption in most cases.
Before and after photos make the difference in color obvious. De Breceny says
that park users have been very pleased
with the lighting improvement, enjoying the whiter, clearer light versus the
yellow hue of the sodium lights.
Another energy-saving lighting initiative in Sahuarita parks was the installation of Musco's Light Structure
Green (LSG) system at its sports ﬁelds.
Advanced photometric technology reduces the need for lighting heads by
half, while focusing the light on the ﬁeld
and reducing migrating light pollution.
" We live in an area where we have a
dark sky ordinance because we're in
very close proximity to the Smithsonian Institution's Whipple Observatory, "
De Breceny says. " They're very pleased

| OCTOBER 2012 | WWW.NRPA.ORG

with it too, because it doesn't pollute the
night sky with nuisance light. It keeps
the majority of light on the ground...it
concentrates right on the ﬁeld itself. "
As with Chattanooga's street lights, an
important component of the LSG system
is the remote operating system. Controlled by desktop computers, the system
can be programmed for a speciﬁc start/
stop time or to start at sundown. Authorized park and recreation staff can call
on a cell phone for a time extension or
alternatively for a cancellation in the case
of bad weather or an early off.
De Breceny has been impressed not
only with the 50- to 60-percent reduction in energy costs, but also with ease
of maintenance for the LSG system.
" It has a 25-year warranty and Musco has stood by their product unbelievably well. We have not had any
problems that they did not cover, " De
Breceny says. " They also will re-lamp
the ﬁxtures for free at 5,000 hours. They
constantly monitor the system for problems...They help my staff walk through
the system if there is a problem and
overnight the parts. "
He continues, " It's been a huge beneﬁt to the community, a huge beneﬁt
to the observatory, and a huge beneﬁt
in saving operational costs and energy
to the department. "
Elizabeth Beard is Managing Editor of
Parks & Recreation (ebeard@nrpa.org).

October 2012 - Parks & Recreation

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