Lighting bugs

DID YOU KNOW that you - you, John or Jamilla Q. Public - can have the lights on Boathouse Row lit in a color of your choice to mark a special occasion?

Yes you can, but there are conditions and stipulations, says Barry Bessler, chief of staff, Office of the 1st Deputy Commissioner, Parks & Facilities.

That's his official title, but since he's the guy who controls the lights, I think of him as Philadelphia's lumiere extraordinaire, or, in Stu-Speak, Director of Pretty Lights. His hand commanded the Boathouse Row lights to turn red, white and blue Thursday and yesterday to celebrate our independence.

That title wouldn't have been possible before 2005, when the 8,000 seven-watt incandescent bulbs that illuminated the 15 Victorian boathouses were swapped out for a computerized LED system.

There were aesthetic and financial reasons to improve one of Philadelphia's most iconic views, graceful as a swan's neck.

First, the old system was behind the technological curve.

Although many of us think the beautiful snow-flake lights outlining the boathouses have always been there, they actually were installed during the Bicentennial celebration in 1976, along with other city lighting improvements.

Second, the lights cost about $50,000 a year, mostly to pay the electric bill. That's a tidy sum.

Third, the 8,000 bulbs had to be changed twice a year, usually in the spring and fall, and that was "a very labor-intensive task," with maintenance workers hanging off the edge of the buildings, Bessler says. The LEDs have a use life about as long as TastyKakes, or, as Bessler estimates, "about 25 years." (Note to city: Some of the lights are out.)

Fourth, the LEDs are computerized and the color of the lights can be changed from a keyboard with ease.

Did we save a big chunk of change switching to LED?, I ask Bessler, who says yes.

Cool. Show me the bills, says Your Favorite Columnist.

Can't. "We don't pay power bills," says Bessler, who refers me to the Department of Public Property. With a little spade work, Deputy Commissioner John Herzins tells me for the 2012 calendar year power costs were $13,468.04, quite a drop from 50Gs.

So we're saving money.

I ask Bessler if there have been any complaints about the LED lamps and he says not really. Early on, he took some calls about the lights looking strange, probably because LEDs are not as "warm" as incandescents.

Back to the topic at hand.

While the Fairmount Park Commission's desire is to keep the Boathouse Row lights a pristine white, the silhouette can be changed to celebrate holidays, promote major city events, support civic endeavors and promote awareness of causes.

So the lights go red, white and blue on July Fourth and green on St. Patrick's Day, part of scheduled annual light shows, as they are called. Some others are "fall colors" - red, orange and yellow - for a few days around Thanksgiving and red, green, gold and shimmering silver (to simulate snow falling) around Christmas, roughly between Dec. 20 and New Year's Day.

In addition, Bessler's department listens to requests, primarily from nonprofits, and produces teal for a couple of days in September on behalf of ovarian cancer and pink for breast cancer for a few days in October.

Yes, when the Phillies are hot, the lights go red and when the Eagles are flying high (and playing on Monday night), the lights on century-old, U.S. National Historic Landmark-certified Boathouse Row will beam green to make a national TV audience's teeth ache with envy.

Others requesting light shows last year were the American Red Cross (red), the Lupus Foundation (purple), the Leukemia Society (red) and Temple University (dark red).

The system has almost every color imaginable, says Bessler, and it is he or a deputy who have their fingers on the color palette.

For registered nonprofit organizations, the charge is $500 per evening, with the rules stipulating no more than two five-minute shows per hour. For other organizations, the fee is $1,000 per evening.

Just for fun, I ask Bessler if a private person can order up lights to celebrate something like a birthday or anniversary.

The answer: Yes, if you have a spare grand and a color in mind.

I have the color, Daily News red. All I need is $1,000 from my boss. Or from readers.

Kickstarter, maybe?

Phone: 215-854-5977

On Twitter: @StuBykofsky

Blog: ph.ly/Byko

Columns: ph.ly/StuBykofsky