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Southern California Trail Lighting Project
Our client was an upscale and very exclusive gated community in Southern California.  The residents of this community were upper middle class, living in large two and three-story custom homes.  Within the center of the community was a special tract of land that they had set aside to be developed into an outdoor private park and trail.  The premises were patrolled by security guards in order to provide safe, 24-hour access to the park once it was completed and properly illuminated.

The scope of the project involved lighting a number of environments and corresponding streets.
The main street that entered the gate to the community was bisected by another street that ran into the main portion of the housing community.  Within one side of this intersection ran the trail, completing a winding circuit that ran around a number of activity centers and natural features.  To one end of the trail was a recreational tennis court.  Nearby was an aerated pond stocked with fish, and at the other end of the trail was a picnic area surrounded by trees.  Lighting of different levels was required in all of these locations, as well as along the trail itself.  Lights would also need to be installed on the streets that surrounded the trail, as the city had long before installed cobra head lights which distributed illumination poorly and created way too much glare for outdoor relaxation.

The exclusive nature of the community removed many of the challenges we normally encounter.
Because this was a somewhat isolated neighborhood, and because the lights of the trail would not be seen in neighboring communities or nearby highways, we had unusual freedom of choice in designing the trail lighting and park lighting systems for this community.  We did not have to worry about dark sky laws or the many regulations that govern such things as parking lot lighting.  Instead, our focus was more on the aesthetic of the outdoor lighting itself.  Parents in this community wanted a combination of security and fun for their children that would make going to the picnic area, fishing in the pond, or playing tennis at midnight just as comfortable and safe as it would be at high noon. This was one of the most expensive projects we have done, and the community had no reservations paying the cost of this elaborate trail lighting project.

Photometric software allowed us to extensively consult with the homeowner’s association.
The people in this neighborhood are highly-educated professionals.  Many of them even have some knowledge of landscaping, electrical services, and outdoor lighting.  There were a few specific requests they made during the negotiations.  To ensure visibility and security, they wanted two layers of trail lighting around the perimeter of the community area.  One layer of light was to be along the trail itself, while the other was to be concealed within nearby foliage.  We provided them with several three dimensional models of how this could be done, showing foot candle levels and light dispersal patterns of the many types of equipment we could offer them.

At the same time, we were able to model the other areas of the community park at the same level of detail.  We showed where tree lights could be installed in the wooded area to create artificial moonlight that complimented the general lighting around the picnic tables.  We showed how underwater lighting could light the pond from within, and we designed a custom tennis court lighting system with our software based upon blueprints of the court under construction.

The fixtures we used in this trail lighting project were energy efficient, environmentally friendly, and highly aesthetic in design and lighting output.
To preserve the natural environment, and to allow for cost-effective lighting along the trails throughout the evening, we used LED lights as much as possible.  Along the street, we replaced the cobra headed fixtures with new retrofit LED lamps that had both better directional control of the light and slashed power consumption by 80%.  In order to avoid overheating the pond and harming the fish with any possible toxic substances, we used LED underwater lights to create an aura of light coming from the water.  This had the secondary benefit of adding yet a third layer of lighting to the northwest end of the trail.  The picnic area was lit with tree lights and decorative park lights set on 12-foot posts.  Along the trail, we installed fluorescent bollards that featured a highly decorative, contemporary design. The tennis court lights were the only standard fixtures we used, and these were installed very carefully as to contain sports lighting within the court area only.

Rlld Commercial  Lighting carries a wide variety of industrial & commercial lighting fixtures. If you can not find what you are looking for call us toll free at 1-866-654-3961 and we will find it for you. Our home office is located in Houston, Texas with warehouses located throughout the United States that enable us to service all 50 states including New York NY, Los Angeles CA, Miami, FL. Chicago, IL. Denver CO., New Orleans, La., Cleveland, Ohio, Kansas City, Mo., Mesa, Arizona, Virginia Beach, Va., Omaha, Nebraska, Oakland, California, Miami, Florida, Tulsa, Oklahoma, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Colorado Springs, Colorado, Arlington, Texas, Beaumont, Texas, Denton, TX, McKinney, Texas, Midland, TX, Killeen, Texas, Dallas TX, San Antonio, TX, Austin, TX, ALBQ, NYC, LA, MPLS.