The festoon lights in King George V Park will be restored to their original brightness following feedback from residents in a public survey.
Melksham Town Council installed the lights early last year to improve safety for those walking through the park in the dark. However, some residents living near the park complained they were ‘too bright’ and intrusive, affecting their homes and gardens.
As a result, the council dimmed the lights and launched a public survey to assess views on the new brightness level and residents’ feelings about using the park.
Residents were asked how often they pass through the park and how they would rate the current lighting.
Results
The results showed that 59% of respondents said the lights were too dim, while 38% reported feeling unsafe with the current lighting. A further 57% said they had avoided using the park after dark, and 47% preferred to restore the original brightness level.
At a town council meeting last month, councillors unanimously agreed to return the lights to their original brightness to improve safety.
Speaking at the meeting, Cllr Saffi Rabey said, “I would like to see the lighting in the park return to near its original levels. I have walked through that park and feel so much safer. I would rather walk through the park than the road because the lighting is so good.”
Criticism
However, a local resident who had previously complained about the brightness criticised the survey, arguing that it failed to properly assess the impact on nearby homes.
“The survey [was] to look at the impact of lights on residents and [it] didn’t do that. The report doesn’t look at the impact on residents. The council failed to do what it agreed to do,” said the resident.
“The survey is awful. It’s an extremely difficult thing to do well. That survey didn’t address the issue it was supposed to; I think it was appalling.”
Another resident, who lives closest to the park lights, spoke in favour of them, saying, “[We live the] closest to the lights in the park. It impacts us, but not terribly badly; we are grateful for them.”
Other suggestions were discussed including turning off lights at specific times or adjusting brightness for busy days. However, the council voted to keep the lights at the original brightness level to ensure the safety of residents.
