Wilkes-Barre, wake up and see the light

The dark can be a scary place. Young people are taught that they should be afraid of the monsters hiding under the bed or around dark corners. And even as adults, it's tough to shake that quickening of the pulse when faced with the unknown in the dark.

That is why I find it odd for a city like Wilkes-Barre to have so little light on the streets around the local college campuses.

I noticed this when I was walking to the movies last year. Looking up and down Northampton Street I was amazed to not see any light provided by street lights. The only light was residual from the parking lot and the giant movies marquee. At the time, it disturbed me, but I eventually forgot about it. But I was reminded of my original feelings this year when I came out of my internship recently on South Franklin Street. Again, I was disturbed by the fact that there were very few lights on the street and the ones that were there provided very little illumination or none at all.

For those who have been to State College, I look at that town as the ideal "college town." The main street can provide a student with almost any necessity, whether in the afternoon or at night. But the nicest thing about the main street, and those surrounding it, is that the streets are bright on the darkest of nights.

Those lights are inviting to the 20-year-olds, elderly, and middle-aged people who wish they were 20-year-olds again. Obviously State College is a much larger community than Wilkes-Barre, but I am not suggesting that they put a smoothie palace on every corner. What I am suggesting is to illuminate downtown and create a warm and inviting area at night. This will not only cause a surge in the number of students who head downtown on foot, but subsequently more businesses may move in because there will be the promise of sustainability.

The city could always use the old "we don't have the money" excuse, but I think it would be a wonderful idea for Wilkes University, King's College, and Wilkes-Barre to purchase more lights jointly. Think about it. The city does not have to worry about the colleges going anywhere. The schools cannot just pick up and leave, nor would they want to. But the students can opt to attend school in cities that offer well-lit, inviting, safe downtowns.

Why should students wander around in the dark? City and school officials should install more lights around the colleges and downtown, or they can expect to lose students and businesses as a result.