Overview
- The City Council, which voted 13–1 Tuesday, authorized proceedings to raise streetlight assessments that officials estimate would generate about $125 million.
- A mayoral order launched a two‑year push to install or repair 60,000 solar units to clear roughly 32,000 pending service requests across the city.
- The new fixtures use solar panels and on‑pole batteries with no copper wiring, which removes a target for thieves and keeps lights on during grid outages.
- About 584,000 parcels will receive mailed notices before a June hearing on the proposed increase, which would be the first fee change since 1996.
- Roughly one in ten of the city’s 220,000 streetlights is dark, and Councilmember Monica Rodriguez cast the lone no vote, citing strain on household budgets.