Palisades Street Lights Gone: Some Could Return in March

Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky at the podium and Traci Park ((to her right) announced a plan to fix street lights in their districts at a press conference in Mar Vista.

At a joint press conference in Mar Vista, Councilmembers Traci Park (CD 11) and Katy (CD5) Yaroslavsky, announced a plan to bring lighting back to Westside communities affected by copper wire thefts. There are more than 1,100 open streetlight repair cases across the Westside.

“Inoperable streetlights are a direct public safety issue,” Park said. “Darkened blocks increase the risk of collisions, create opportunities for crime, and put pedestrians and families at risk. Nearly half of the lights that are out today are down because of theft. While the City works to get ahead of this epidemic, we are taking action locally to dedicate funding and restore lighting in our Westside neighborhoods.”

Yaroslavsky added, “Los Angeles has a streetlight emergency. One in ten lights are out, and my colleagues and I on the City Council are done asking residents to wait on a broken bureaucracy.”

The two have pooled dollars to fund a dedicated streetlight repair crew for their districts and formally co-introduced that motion to allocate those funds at a February 13 City Council meeting.

In Mar Vista, Park was asked where the councilmembers will get the money to repair lights, because unlike most other council districts, CD5 and CD11 do not have access to AB 1290 funds — discretionary tax increment dollars that other districts around the city rely on for infrastructure improvements and repairs.

Park and Yaroslavsky have isolated about half a million between their two districts and would use that to start repairs.

Mar Vista resident Andrew Martin said, “The usual feeling you have is that government doesn’t work, but this is a clear example that it does, starting at the bottom with local community members and local leaders like Traci and Katy.”

Initially when he reported inoperable lights, he was told repairs could take up to 270 days. “We’re hopeful that our lights will be up and running very soon,” Martin said.

Also speaking was Karen Wallerstein, CEO of the Venice Chamber of Commerce. “People feel safe walking home. When streets are lit, residents feel more secure and for businesses evening foot traffic increases.”

Over the past several years, Los Angeles has experienced a surge in copper wire theft that now accounts for nearly half of all streetlight outages citywide. Repairing vandalized infrastructure is significantly more expensive than routine maintenance, with costs reaching into the tens of millions of dollars.

It has been estimated that as many as 700 streetlights have been destroyed in Pacific Palisades after the 2025 Fire – and that doesn’t include the lights that were not working before the fire.

As people move home, they find neighborhoods black at night – making standing homes targets for criminals. Streets are rife with wildlife such as coyotes searching for food. The lack of light causes hazards for drivers who are navigating pot-holed and crumbling streets that were also destroyed during the fire.

At the press conference Park was asked specifically about Pacific Palisades. Funding for this community will come from a different source.

She said that the L.A. City Administrative Officer Matt Szabo has identified $1 million to front fund repairs to be used specifically for the Palisades street lighting, so that construction and replacement can start now. That city money will be replaced with FEMA money once it is received from the Federal government.

“El Medio is the top of the priority list,” Park said. It is based on the number of people who have returned to the neighborhood and have contacted her office about lights.

Repairs should start in the next two to three weeks, according to Park’s office.