Students walking to evening classes now have brighter lights to guide their way. The University has replaced the lamp poles surrounding the Court of North Carolina and installed six additional units.

John Laetz, a high voltage engineer, said “Certificate of Participation,” state funding given to the University provided financial support for the renewal of the lamp poles.

“Internally, some of that funding was dedicated towards upgrading the lighting in certain places around campus,” he said.

According to Mary Beth Johnson, associate vice chancellor for facilties, “Certificate of Participation” is funding provided by the state for repair and renovation for all state agencies. She said the fund totals about $300 million.

“We just get one piece of it,” she said.

Laetz said the University Architect’s Office makes the decisions on what the funding should be used for.

“The actual location and use of this came from the University Architect’s Office,” he said. “We simply made it happen.”

Laetz indicated facilities replaced 34 light poles throughout the Court of North Carolina and six more light poles were added to the area.

“We [decided] that on the basis of having adequate lighting in [areas] where the lights were going to go,” he said.

Laetz said the idea of student safety inspired the decision to improve the light poles and add additional ones.

“The hope is, of course, that it will improve safety,” he said.

Daniel Shattuck, a junior in anthropology, said the improved lighting helps protect students who have club or organization meetings in the buildings surrounding the Court of North Carolina after dark.

“It just seems a lot safer for people walking back when it’s well lit,” he said.

Ashley Watkins, a junior in political science, indicated the new lights make her feel safer.

“I never really walk through here at night,” she said. “But if I did, I guess it would make me feel a lot safer.”

Jon Cole, a sophomore in political science, said the additional lights help when he has to walk through the Court of North Carolina when he “goes out on dates.”

“It’s not quite as creepy as it used to be,” he said.

According to Laetz, the University architect’s office chose not to install any light poles in the center portions of the courtyard “with the intent to keep the [open] atmosphere.”

“That was done primarily for aesthetics [and] for an architectural choice,” he said.

Amanda Filipczuk-Baker, a senior in sociology, said the new design of the light poles go well with the architecture of the Court of North Carolina.

“I think it’s nice that they’re considering safety and at the same time trying to incorporate some beautification in the landscaping,” she said.

The new light poles have a new design as well as updated materials used in their construction.

Laetz said the new light poles are “vastly different” from the original lights.

“The whole thing from the ground all the way up is totally different from what we had before,” he said.

He added that the major difference in the replaced light poles is the type of light used.

“[It’s] a much whiter light,” he said. “They simply look brighter.”

Laetz said the lights are also energy-saving and the poles are aluminum instead of steel.

According to Laetz, the new poles might not make a difference to the average person however, he is pleased with the results.

“We did the design internally and it came out to be very much what we expected,” he said.

Laetz pointed to the fact that the replacement poles are identical to the lights installed in the Mary Yarbrough Court last year.