LANCASTER, Pa. (WHTM) – Residents who live in Lancaster city’s southwest quadrant are starting to see the light.

Vicente Ramos had porch lights installed on two of his properties on Strawberry Street. He didn’t have to pay a thing for the lights.

“They look beautiful,” he said.

The lights are being installed on century-old homes thanks to a grant-funded initiative to shine a light on crime.

Neighborhood directors in SOWE plan to spend $26,000 this year to install lights through June.

“It makes it a lot safer,” Ramos said. “People can see there is more light.”

Jake Thorsen, SoWe’s neighborhood director, said over the next decade, officials hope to install a total of 500 lights. 

“It makes a huge difference having these lights on,” Thorsen said. “They’re bright LED dusk to dawn lights.”

Thorsen said since installation is covered and the lights are LED, it costs only a couple dollars the whole year to keep them running.

“We’re hoping to create a cohesive neighborhood,” he said. “I think people feeling safe, people being able to go in and out of their house at night is extremely important to us. The light is just a small piece of doing that.”

If you live in SOWE, you can get a light by emailing SoWeprotect@sowelancaster.org