Policy committee asks administration for full report on countywide streetlight outages
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Summary
Miami‑Dade County policy committee members asked the administration to return to the committee with a detailed report on the county streetlight maintenance contract, outages and theft mitigation after multiple commissioners described long-running outages affecting businesses and public safety.
The Policy Committee of the Miami‑Dade County Board of County Commissioners asked county administration to prepare a full report on the countywide streetlight maintenance contract and outages and return to the committee at its next meeting.
Committee members said they have received numerous complaints and described concentrated outages in some districts that they said pose public‑safety and economic concerns. Commissioner Cohen Higgins told the committee she receives frequent resident complaints; Commissioner Jeannette (transcript: Conegens/Tran context) also described persistent outages in her district. Commissioner [Sponsor] requested the administration include specific counts, contract status and a plan for faster restoration.
Why it matters: Commissioners said street lighting is a core municipal service that affects safety and commerce. Several said the county needs clearer timelines and accountability from the contractor and a plan to mitigate theft and vandalism that delays repairs.
Discussion details: Commissioners asked the administration to include in the report: - A list of known, inoperable lights for each district and an explicit list of the 35 lights cited in District 8; - How many fixtures have been converted to LED; - Contract status including whether the vendor is meeting its obligations or is in default; - The number of poles knocked down and outstanding replacements; and - Proposed steps to mitigate copper theft and speed repairs.
Director of Transportation and Public Works (Mr. Tran) told the committee staff had the requested data and agreed to compile it into a digestible report rather than present the raw data at the meeting. He also said department staff are working with the Miami‑Dade Sheriff’s Office and detectives on theft cases affecting lighting infrastructure.
Action/direction: The committee did not take a formal vote on the item but the chair and members recorded the will of the committee that the administration return with the requested report at the next Policy Committee meeting.
Ending: Committee members said they expect the report to include both problem inventories and timelines for repair so the committee can consider possible changes to contract management or procurement next session.