Elbertians, navigating the array of road construction disruption since June, watching the stimulus-funded beautification of Old M-168 unfold, have been eagerly awaiting one key feature of the improvements: LED lamplight! But with work completed ahead of the October 30 deadline, many have been wondering, Why the heck aren’t the lights on yet?

They will be tonight, according to Sharyn Bower, Village clerk, who spoke with Don Zimmerman, the electrician in charge of the hookups. Indeed, some residents may have noticed them being lit this past Friday (though this writer did not); Zimmerman and son turned them on that day. Zimmerman speculates that Consumers Power may have shut them off when they “did their thing” on Friday (presumably, hooked them up to the meters).

The upshot is, all 22 LED lamps should be lit tonight. Let the late-night jogging, dog-walking, and loitering begin. Old M-168 is ours now (with all that entails). Let’s start wearing it out.—Emily Votruba