Pico-Union Neighborhood Left in Darkness – Copper Wire Theft Causes Ongoing Streetlight Outages
Residents and Businesses Struggle with Dark Streets in Pico-Union After Copper Wire Theft
According to NBC Los Angeles, in the Pico-Union neighborhood, copper wire thieves have left the streets dark for over six months, making residents and business owners very upset. The thieves stole copper wires from electrical boxes in December, and now the streetlights don’t work. People like Richard Najera are unhappy seeing broken electrical boxes and having to live in darkness. Local businesses, such as La Flor De Yucatán, are suffering too. They recently had cash stolen in a break-in they believe could have been prevented if the streetlights were working. Nancy Castaneda, a cashier at the restaurant, says people now use flashlights to walk around at night because of the long-lasting outages.
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Councilmember Hernandez Criticizes Small Budget for Street Lighting – Promises to Advocate for Faster Repairs
City officials know about the copper wire problem but have had trouble fixing it quickly. District 1 Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez made a statement about the issue, pointing out the city’s ongoing problems with fixing streetlights. She criticized the city’s small budget for street lighting, which has caused repair delays of over six months. Hernandez promised to keep pushing for more money to make sure neighborhoods get the repairs and services they need on time.