Educational 12 February 2025
If there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s that parks are Amazing—capital-‘A’ Amazing. From humble pocket parks squeezed between high rises to expansive national recreational areas stretching across remote wilderness, these green sanctuaries have something for everyone: playgrounds for children, sports courts for athletes, trails for nature enthusiasts, and gathering places for community celebration.
As amazing and diverse as parks are, they present unique challenges when it comes to lighting. Many parks are in remote areas, where electrical connections aren’t possible or practical. Others might have grid access but border residential areas where light trespass and glare could be problematic. Still others are temporary installations where permanent infrastructure, including grid-tied lighting, just doesn’t make sense.
Enter solar lighting—a versatile solution that transforms these challenges into opportunities for flexible, low-impact park illumination. In this article, we’ll explore different types of parks, the lighting challenges they face, and how solar lighting offers an ideal solution for each.
Neighborhood parks are the social and recreational heart of residential communities. Typically owned and maintained by municipalities, neighborhood parks serve a compact area—usually a four- or five-block radius—often nestled in a densely populated area. They’re go-to spots for after-school playtime, dog walks, and recreation, featuring playgrounds, picnic shelters, and pickleball courts.
Their proximity to homes makes light trespass a key concern. Solar lighting solutions like Sol’s tackle this with fixtures designed to direct light precisely where needed—downward onto activity areas—preventing unwanted illumination of neighboring properties. Motion sensors can also be used to keep the park dark when it’s not in use, maintaining the benefits of darkness while automatically brightening to ensure safety during active hours.
Unlike their smaller neighborhood cousins, urban parks serve the bustling cores of cities, surrounded by a mix of residential and commercial buildings. These parks often pack myriad features into compact spaces—playgrounds, fitness equipment, sports courts, and public art—making them active spaces from dawn to dusk and beyond.
With so much going on, solar lighting is an attractive choice for its flexible, low-impact installation. Unlike grid-tied lighting, solar lights can be placed wherever needed without the constraints of electrical connection locations. Installation is quick and non-invasive with no trenching or cabling, so adjacent amenities usually aren’t affected, and activities can continue uninterrupted. Plus, since they are powered by the sun, they reduce dependency on strained urban grids, ensuring parks stay lit even during power outages.
Pop-up parks are the creative darlings of landscape architecture, turning vacant lots into vibrant community assets. Whether temporary or semi-permanent, these small parks are flexible, with amenities that change over time, including art installations, food truck courts, performance spaces, and community gardens.
The dynamic nature of these parks demands equally adaptable lighting solutions. Conventional lighting, with its time- and labor-intensive installation, makes little sense for spaces that might be reconfigured every few months or relocated entirely. Solar lighting, by contrast, is quick to install and can be easily moved as the park layout evolves.
By definition, linear parks are long or linear in shape, and are often found along a stream, river, or repurposed railway lines (see: Indiana’s Erie Lackawanna Trail and California’s Whittier Greenway Trail, both of which are lit with Sol systems!). These parks often span miles, connecting multiple neighborhoods and communities through trail networks, bike paths, and protected green spaces.
Extending traditional electrical infrastructure over these expanses can be extremely costly and disruptive. Solar lighting again offers an ideal solution: self-contained units that don’t rely on continuous conduit, that can be installed wherever needed, and that can be equipped with motion detection and group communication to provide safety when needed and energy savings when not.
While most state and national parklands remain intentionally dark to preserve natural habitats and star-gazing opportunities, certain high-traffic areas require reliable illumination. Visitor centers, parking lots, trailheads, and campgrounds all need lighting for safety and wayfinding, particularly during the early morning and evening hours when many visitors begin or end their adventures.
In these remote locations, solar lighting is invaluable, as it eliminates the need to extend power lines through pristine wilderness. Grid independence also means solar lights shine through power outages—a key benefit, particularly in areas where storms are frequent or services are far away. Wildlife-friendly features like dimming and motion sensing help balance human safety with conservation.
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Of course, there are many more parks than those we’ve covered in this article. Dog parks, skate parks, RV parks, amusement parks, and pocket parks all face unique lighting challenges, and all can benefit from solar solutions. Whether it’s enhancing safety, supporting flexible park designs, minimizing environmental impact, or eliminating utility costs, solar lighting meets the needs of every park space.
