Plastic Covers on Bottom of Metal Light Poles Around Detroit

[carlscomputers]

Greetings All!
Does anyone have any info on those gray or green plastic covers on the bottom of lots of metal light poles around town? Seems like they just came out of nowhere? Now, they seem to be disappearing just as mysteriously? Does anyone have any insight on where they came from, or what purpose do they serve?

[ordinary]

I know there is at least one thread regarding this. I think that they were supposed to beautify the poles and maybe prevent copper thieves from stealing the wire. The city was ripped off on this deal. Degradation from sunlight and weather probably wrecked most of these.

[jackie5275]

As I remember, they were put up before the Super Bowl to beautify the area. IMO, they're a bunch of junk. Too many have been wrecked by cars and snow removal equipment.

[Detroitnerd]

http://www.metrotimes.com/editorial/story.asp?id=7202

This past fall, News Hits took snide note of the city’s $1.2 million effort to protect streetlights from wire-stealing scrappers [[“Not so bright,� Metro Times, Oct. 6, 2004). When last we visited the issue, the City of Detroit was placing plastic covers, called shrouds, over the bases of some 21,000 light poles. At that time, Al Fields, the city’s deputy chief operating officer, told us the shrouds were intended to both improve the look of street lamps [[more on that later) and thwart scrap thieves who crave the copper wiring inside.
Testing the shrouds, News Hits discovered that they posed no deterrence whatsover. It took zero effort to lift the plastic covers. Fields admitted that, yes, determined thieves would find a way to access the streetlights’ innards.
Last week, an e-mail [[keep those tips coming, kids) alerted us to another shroud shortcoming. The tipster directed us to a stretch of St. Aubin beween Vernor and Lafayette on the city’s near East Side. What we saw were cracked shrouds, battered shouds, busted shrouds and, in some cases, shrouds ripped entirely from the poles they were supposed to protect. ...

[Retroit]

$1.2 million wasted protecting the peoples' property from the people. This is how Detroiters put themselves at a disadvantage over other cities that do not have such unnecessary expenses.

[Baselinepunk]

I've also heard that the plastic becomes brittle in cold temperatures and disintegrate when they encounter subsequent desposition of snow during snow removal.

Some vendor got a sweetheart deal.

[Detroitnerd]

How much you want to be the vendor was a Kilpatrick donor?

[Jimaz]

Al Fields, the city’s deputy chief operating officer, told us the shrouds were intended to both improve the look of street lamps [[more on that later) and thwart scrap thieves who crave the copper wiring inside.

I haven't seen any discussion about scrappers for quite some time now. Why not? Has the problem diminished? Have people become used to it? Sincerely.

[Detroitnerd]

I haven't seen any discussion about scrappers for quite some time now. Why not? Has the problem diminished? Have people become used to it? Sincerely.

The price of copper has gone down since the crash?

[Diehard]

The price of copper has gone down since the crash?

Indeed it has. The crash slowed down China's building boom and the demand for copper fell. It's one sick silver lining to the mess we find ourselves in.

[Jimaz]

Indeed it has. The crash slowed down China's building boom and the demand for copper fell. It's one sick silver lining to the mess we find ourselves in.

So conversely it might be argued that China's building boom indirectly contributed to our scrapper problem? How interesting, odd and ... plausible. I guess that answers my question.

It's a small world after all.

[DetroitPlanner]

I haven't seen any discussion about scrappers for quite some time now. Why not? Has the problem diminished? Have people become used to it? Sincerely.

I am unsure what the price of copper is but gold is still very high at about $1,200 an ounce.

Anything worth scrapping is now gone!

[Russix]

In reading the above link I came across this more recent[[and funnier!) story.

...
However, poetic justice may be less forgiving. In the Detroit Inferno, Kandia and all bribe takers shall have to work low level, low pay, thankless civil service jobs in offices with endless baskets of money sitting about. Yet whenever they grab a handful of money it melts away to nothing. Monica Conyers will have the added penalty of being unable to utter a curse word. And, in a special nod to Sam Riddle, who faces similar charges, those who give bribes shall have pockets bulging with money but receive nothing in return when paying for services. And they should also get charged for their bribery.
...

http://www.metrotimes.com/editorial/story.asp?id=14630

[MichMatters]

It amazes me that, at least partly, these were supposed to be to improve the aesthetics of poles. If anything, they do the complete opposite. Instead of keeping a single, sleek line, you put what essentially looks like a big ugg boot around the foot of a slender utility pole. It's not as if the elements fans outward gracefully. It looks like a clunker of an architectural element.

[Detroitnerd]

It amazes me that, at least partly, these were supposed to be to improve the aesthetics of poles. If anything, they do the complete opposite. Instead of keeping a single, sleek line, you put what essentially looks like a big ugg boot around the foot of a slender utility pole. It's not as if the elements fans outward gracefully. It looks like a clunker of an architectural element.

1: Figure out a problem the city has.

2: Instead of thinking of a serious, permanent solution, come up with something that might benefit one of your campaign donors or cronies.

3: Once you've secured financial or other support, spent $1.2 million on a spurious, temporary solution that allows your friends to profit.

4: Sit back and let everything fall apart while you force everybody you can to say that the system worked.

It's what you might call the Kilpatrick method. One hopes Bing won't take the same road.

[East Detroit]

Politics as usual. Not just a City of Detroit thing.

For other examples... how about all the new corner street signs in Saint Clair Shores [[now with a nifty new sailboat icon) or in Roseville [[now with a nifty new Rose icon)?

The old street signs were perfectly fine. Why did these two cities feel that they needed to replace every single corner street sign?

[Detroitnerd]

Politics as usual. Not just a City of Detroit thing.

For other examples... how about all the new corner street signs in Saint Clair Shores [[now with a nifty new sailboat icon) or in Roseville [[now with a nifty new Rose icon)?

The old street signs were perfectly fine. Why did these two cities feel that they needed to replace every single corner street sign?

Ha! Well, when those signs are busted and hanging around the bottom of the poles, then we can say it's not just a city of Detroit thing.

[Retroit]

Politics as usual. Not just a City of Detroit thing.

For other examples... how about all the new corner street signs in Saint Clair Shores [[now with a nifty new sailboat icon) or in Roseville [[now with a nifty new Rose icon)?

The old street signs were perfectly fine. Why did these two cities feel that they needed to replace every single corner street sign?

To "keep up with the Joneses" in Eastpointe who started putting shamrocks on their street signs.

[gencinjay]

I seem to remember the real issue was most of the light posts were rusting and/or missing caps so wires were exposed. The cover was a "cheap" way of keeping people from touching the exposed wires.

[Detroitnerd]

AH, but they lasted just long enough for the Super Bowl. What else matters, right?

[psubliminal]

That's the first time I've seen those things. They're way ugly. Who in their right mind would even risk accidental electrocution by going after the wire in a streetlight?

[MichMatters]

Who in their right mind would even risk accidental electrocution by going after the wire in a streetlight?

Methinks you've never considered or heard of the desperation of a crack-head and other assorted desperates. Back when copper and the rest were fetching sky, you'd hear about local scrappers being electrocuted all the time. This was back in 2007 andd 2008.