By Carol Cole
Transcript Staff Writer

The historic Campus Corner area will soon receive new historic-styled lighting with the first funds spent from the Campus Corner Tax Increment Financing District funds.

The city council OK'd purchase of the 54 Pelco poles and lighting fixtures at its May 23 meeting for $161,158.92 from the Campus Corner TIF fund. Delivery of the light poles will take about 90 days from the date ordered, said Public Works Director Jimmy Berry.

It is hoped the late summer installation will be in time for the University of Oklahoma football season, Berry said. The first home football game is Sept. 2 against the University of Alabama/Birmingham.

"That's why we had it on the agenda for us to be entering into a contract with a contractor to purchase it and install it. And so there will be an agenda item on next council agenda to award a construction contract to the contractor to do the installation," he said.

There have been various lighting installations in the area in the past, including some historical lighting.

"This will kind of unify all of the lighting," Berry said. "I think it will be pretty nice when we get it done. ... This will be more in keeping with the lights that we installed downtown and it will dress up the Corner a little bit."

Any old lights that are removed will be kept for spare parts or reused if there is a way to reincorporate them, he said.

Some preliminary work may be done before the poles arrive, giving the contractor somewhat of a head start. The contractor will be able to go in and start doing foundations and run conduit and put in pull boxes.

"They'll be able to start to work as soon as the contract is awarded. They just won't be able to put up the poles until they come in," he said.

The construction contract has a bonus clause in it that for each day that the contractor is finished prior to Sept. 1, they'll get $1,500 up to a total of $22,000, Berry said.

Carol Cole 366-3538 ccole@normantranscript.com