Huntsville agrees to eclipse light installation at River Mill Park skating rink
Huntsville Council agreed to an eclipse light installation at River Mill Park, in the July 22nd, 2024, meeting.
Kelly Haywood, Executive Director of the Municipal Accommodation Tax Board and Explore Huntsville sought approval for a light canopy over the skating rink, which will have 16 strands and will start at the bandshell and continue to the edge of the park, once the poles are installed there.
She said the purpose of the lights “is to better illuminate the rink,” and will be an overall improvement to the skating rink experience.
The lights are anticipated to add to the “beautification” of infrastructure and to concerts,” added Haywood.
They will be placed high up, so will be out of reach and out of the way, unless there is an arial show, in which case they will be removed, advised Haywood. She said removal is expensive, which is another reason to keep them up.
Haywood also said that the costs for the installation and maintenance of the lights will be covered, “except for the small amount of power usage that we’d be requesting.” She assured Council that the LED lights will only be on for short durations in the evening and automatically shut off at 10pm.
She added, “If there were to be vandalism to the lights, we would look after that.”
She also indicated that a refrigeration unit will be added to the ice pad as a way to lengthen the season, and as a back up for weather issues, such as warmer temperatures, for better ice quality.
Councillor, Bob Stone, inquired about whether the lights will be left up for the whole year.
Haywood said that they would like to leave them up year-round. The goal is to add to park performances, and they will contribute to safety as well.
Mayor, Nancy Alcock, suggested that the decision to keep them up will be considered throughout the year once they are already installed.
She added that she “see’s benefit to the security of lighting in the park.”
Deputy Mayor, Dan Armour, concurred that the lights can add to park security, especially considering there has been vandalism there recently.
He added that last weekend there was also a concert event and that you had to be careful walking outside of it because of how dark it was, which the lighting could be helpful for.
The goal for installation of the lights is planned for November, in time for the first frost, said Haywood.
