Residents of Greek Row and the surrounding neighborhood may find their living environment a little brighter, if the DeKalb City Council passes a proposal for area lighting improvements.

The plan for increased lighting is one of the proposed steps to improve the safety of the area, Community Services Planner Sue Guio said.

“We want to make people feel safe and enjoy their living environment,” she said.

According to the results of a survey taken by Greek Row residents in 2001, safety is one of the main concerns of residents in this area, Guio said.

“I think increased lighting would make people feel safer,” Sigma Kappa Social Chair Cindy Salas said.

The proposed area for lighting consists of the property between Edgebrook Drive and Greenbrier Road, she said.

The city hopes to increase lighting in and between privately owned parking lots, so the property owners have to give their consent before city council can approve the plan, Guio said.

Most of the property owners agree this program should be implemented, First Ward Alderman Karega Harris said.

“There is definitely a need for more lighting,” Star Properties Office Manager Joe Sosnowski said.

The landlords in the area are making more of an effort, Sosnowski said. Star Properties has been making improvements in several of the area buildings.

“We are hoping to improve the quality of living there,” he said.

To begin the process, ComEd has been hired to give cost estimates and other assessments, Community Development Intern Laurie Hoogeveen said.

The lighting committee will meet Wednesday to finalize a schedule of events, Guio said. As of now, there is no deadline set for the lights to be installed.

“If everything goes perfectly, January would be the earliest,” she said.

In further attempts to increase safety, the city has adopted an environmental design for safety, Guio said.

Some of the existing landscaping, such as bushes next to doorways, allows criminals to surprise their victims or hide after they have committed a crime, she said.

The environmental design for safety asks property owners to take these factors into consideration and make the changes necessary to improve safety, she said.

Improving residents’ safety is one of the goals in the Greek Row Revitalization Program that began last September.

A meeting with the Student Association at the end of September will address other possibilities for area improvements, Hoogeveen said.