Nightime Lighting Available Soon at Orcutt Community Park

          A step towards illuminating the athletic fields at Orcutt Community Park was taken last month as the Board of Supervisors awarded the Diana Building Corporation nearly one million dollars for the Orcutt Community Park lighting Phase 2 project.  

          Jeff Lindgren, Assistant Director of the County Parks Division said, "When it gets dark around 4:30 in the afternoon during winter months, the fields will be well-lit for kids to practice and be prepared to participate in their games."

          The efficient LED lights will be computer programmed to slowly dim at 8:45 PM until they shut down completely at 9:00 PM.

          The lighting will be available in winter during the standard time months.  The lighting is designed to directly illuminate the play fields. 

          Currently, each youth sports league must bring a trailer with a mounted generator and light tower to the fields, "which entails bring fuel to the generators.  It's noisy and smelly.  Youth sports organizations have been doing this for the last five years," adds Lindgren.

           "This upgrade will allow the fields to be used longer in to the evening which gives us more use of fields we already have.  We don't have to spend time and money on new filed space.  We can make more field time available by adding lights to the popular community fields."

          The lights should be operational by spring.

          Funding for the improvements comes from the County Parks Capital Project Fund, Operational Fund and Orcutt developer Quimby fees, fund s paid by developers to fund parks and recreation.  The Orcutt Community Facilities District helps provide ongoing maintenance at Orcutt Community Park.

Steve Southwick reporting