ROCKWOOD — An unlit section of Main Street in Rockwood is set to get a little brighter later this year.
Guelph/Eramosa council has approved adding six new streetlights along Main Street North between Gzowski Street and Edgar Bonner Avenue at its council meeting Monday afternoon.
The decision follows ongoing resident concerns about people in the winter not being able to see the entrance to Sacred Heart Catholic Elementary School, where the Bonarrow Subdivision is located.
Streetlighting currently ends at Gzowski Street.
"So you got a school back there, you've got a daycare back there, you've got a lot of traffic- this is just normal street lighting. There just isn't any where we should have it," said Mayor Chris White, at the meeting.
Asking why the Bonarrow Subdivision didn't contribute development charges to the street light extension when the agreement was created, Coun. Corey Woods wanted to know where the project funds would come from.
The project is currently proposed to cost $14,700 from the 2026 budget.
"Taxpayers shouldn't be on the hook for this ... It's not coming off their property tax bill but's still the taxpayer's money," said Woods.
Public Works director Harry Niemi said it was likely an "oversight" and the project's funding will come from the streetlight reserve and the hydro fund, which are user-funded.
"It's the same as water user pay: those who get the street lights pay, those who don't, don't," said White.
Depending on material availability and tariff discussions, Niemi said light installation is planned for later this year.
Isabel Buckmaster is the Local Journalism Initiative reporter for GuelphToday. LJI is a federally-funded program.
