Beverly Hills Street Lamps Having a Little Work Done

BEVERLY HILLS: A reader saw this fancy Beverly Hills street lamp being yanked from a sidewalk at Wilshire and Hamilton and replaced with the plebeian one on the left and wondered what was going on. Explainer? Therese Kosterman, a spokeswoman for Beverly Hills, says the street lights are being taken out temporarily as part of a modernization project that will bring in energy efficient lights, fittings for banners, and conduits for WiFi access. "The bases of these particular lamps are being recast in aluminum for easier maintenance, and will look exactly like the old bases," Kosterman tells us, saying work will finish in the summer. "The lighting fixtures themselves will be a similar, art deco style." [Curbed Staff]