The Latest: Detroit could spend $9M to fix streetlights

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In the Friday, May 3, 2019 photo, shows the burned-out LED lights of a LeoTek streetlight in Detroit. The city’s Public Lighting Authority said a manufacturer is to blame for the premature failure of about one third the LED streetlights installed as the city embarked on municipal bankruptcy. (Christine Ferretti/Detroit News via AP)

The Latest on lawsuit filed against manufacturer of LED streetlights that Detroit officials say are burning out prematurely or cracking (all times local):

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5 p.m.

Mayor Mike Duggan says it will cost up to $9 million to fix thousands of failing LED streetlights in Detroit, but repairs will be done as reimbursement is sought from the manufacturer.

Duggan tells The Detroit News that the city is “going full speed ahead on replacement.”

Detroit’s Public Lighting Authority filed a lawsuit Monday in federal court against San Jose, California-based Leotek Electronics USA.

The last of Detroit’s 65,000 new LED streetlights were installed in 2016 as part of a $185 million program. Leotek made about one-third of the lights and they were expected to last at least a decade.

The newspaper reports a letter from the lighting authority’s law firm says problems were discovered last fall with units that were “charred, burned, or cracked.”

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8 a.m.

Officials say some of Detroit’s new LED streetlights are prematurely dimming and burning out in parts of the city and thousands more could fail.

The Detroit News reports a letter from the Public Lighting Authority’s law firm says problems were discovered last fall with units made by San Jose, California-based Leotek Electronics USA that were “charred, burned, or cracked.” The lighting authority sued Monday in federal court.

Leotek made about one-third of Detroit’s new lights and they were expected to last at least a decade. It acknowledged problems in a letter to the lighting authority, apologized and pledged to work with Detroit to correct problems.

The Associated Press left a message Tuesday seeking comment from Leotek.

The last of Detroit’s 65,000 new LED streetlights were installed in 2016 as part of a $185 million program that was hailed as a success in the city’s turnaround efforts.

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Information from: The Detroit News, http://detnews.com/

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