Mayor Kirk Caldwell is taking heat from City Council members, astronomers and environmentalists over his plan to replace roughly 52,000 Oahu standard street lights with light-emitting diode lamps that are supposed to be brighter, cooler and cheaper.

After hearing from parties criticizing the city’s request for proposals as too narrowly crafted and geared toward obtaining an antiquated form of LEDs, the Council Budget Committee voted unanimously Wednesday to advance Resolution 15-215, which asks the administration to provide specifics on the project’s status.

Council Chairman Ernie Martin, who co-authored the resolution, wants the administration to reconsider issuing the contract. Noting the contract could net a company $20 million over the next 10 to 15 years, Martin said "we want to make sure we get the best value with respect to our taxpayers."

Critics argued that LEDs with a lower "color temperature" would be more appropriate. They also argued that the city should have required vendors to provide control panels that would allow for dimming lights.

Robert Kroning, the city’s design and construction director, told committee members that the city recently awarded Ameresco Inc. the LED conversion project over two other companies and is in the process of finalizing the details before a contract is signed.

"We are hopeful that we will begin seeing replacement fixtures by the end of the year," Kroning said.

Astronomer Kevin Jim said the blue lights emitted by the specified LEDs not only would make it more difficult to view stars at night, they have been known to affect people’s ability to sleep and propensity for getting cancer. "And, frankly, they’re ugly," he said.

The request for proposals, Jim said, does not allow for the possibility of using dimmers and reducing lighting where possible.

Jim said that he, along with University of Hawaii scientists and the Sierra Club Oahu chapter, tried unsuccessfully to persuade the administration to address their concerns. "The administration rejected all of our suggestions," he said.

Sierra Club Oahu Chapter spokesman Anthony Aalto, who did not attend Wednesday’s meeting, confirmed Jim’s recollection.

"We love that the city is switching to LEDs," Aalto said. "We just wish they would have chosen a different color temperature." Caldwell and other officials said changing the specifications would have delayed the project by a year.

Kroning said using LEDs with a lower temperature and installing dimmer capability, which could be done at a later date, would both cost the city more.

As for criticism that the scope of the bid specifications was too narrow, language allowed for bidders to submit alternative proposals, Kroning said.