A Michigan City Receives a Solar Solution

As part of a deal to resolve $4 million of debt to the local utility and reduce a reported $60,000 per-month electric bill, in 2011 DTE Energy removed more than 1,000 city streetlights in Highland Park, leaving the community's 10,000 residents in the dark.

In response to the debt-imposed blackout, Soulardarity, a grassroots collective nonprofit, began raising money to install solar-powered streetlights on Highland Park's dark streets.

The installation cost of a solar streetlight ranges from $6,500 to $10,000, with maintenance costs of $100 per year per light. In 2012 the group's Solar Streetlights initiative raised enough money through a crowd-funding campaign to purchase a single streetlight, which it installed at 150 Victor Street, near the site of pioneering automaker Henry Ford's historic Highland Park factory.

A few years later, a few more streetlights went up, one in front of resident Nandi Frye's house.

"That light, it really shines bright on my street. I love that solar light," she told Michigan Radio.

In 2016, Soulardarity installed 50 home and alley lights. The program has expanded from basic models to include commercial and alley level lighting as well as solar phone chargers and solar generators.

The ultimate goal is to restore all of the city's streetlights. Unfortunately, unless a wealthy benefactor appears, that moment could be light years away. But with the people power behind an effort called the "Let There Be Light initiative, there is hope that throughout the city's streets there will, eventually, be light.

• Highland Park is a member of the AARP Network of Age-Friendly States and Communities

_{This article is adapted from the "Public Places and Outdoor Spaces" chapter of the AARP book Where We Live: Communities for All Ages — 100+ Inspiring Ideas From America’s Community Leaders.} 

^{Page published November 2017}