By Leslie Albrecht
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
UPPER WEST SIDE — The lights are bright on Broadway — too bright, say some Upper West Siders.
Time Warner Cable recently turned down the wattage on brightly lit signs at its West 96th Street and Broadway retail store after complaints from residents.
The store is the first Time Warner Cable location in New York to feature "state-of-the-art" LED displays, according to a company statement. Its meant to serve as a model for other Time Warner Cable stores, which will be remodeled with similar flashy signage during 2010 and 2011.
The company touted the store's "eye-catching audio, video and digital signage technology" in a press release when the store opened in May.
"This fresh approach to design allows for an open and engaging experience for consumers," said Time Warner Cable Executive Vice President Howard Szarfarc in a statement in May. "Having immediate access to this digital and video platform provides us the ability to connect consumers with clear, meaningful and up-to-the-moment information."
But locals say the only thing the high-tech lights gave them was a headache.
Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal's office got angry phone calls from several neighbors complaining that the bright blue signs repeatedly flashing the phrase "Time Warner Cable" were keeping them up at night, said Legislative Director Jonathan Davis.
Rosenthal asked Time Warner to dim the lights. "This level of illumination is intrusive, environmentally wasteful and clearly qualifies as light pollution,” said Rosenthal in a statement. "New York City is a demanding place to live and my constituents deserve their sleep.”
Rosenthal said millions of taxpayer dollars have been invested in the 96th Street subway station renovation across from the Time Warner Cable store, but the beautification project is marred by "this neon eyesore."
Time Warner Cable says its turned down the wattage on the lights earlier this summer after complaints from residents. The issue flared up again last week when an equipment malfunction made the lights blaze too brightly again, said company spokeswoman Suzanne Giuliani. The problem was fixed and the lights shouldn't cause problems in the future, Giuliani said.
"Sensitivity to our communities and customers is of paramount importance to us," Giuliani said in an e-mail. "We apologize for any inconvenience this situation may have caused our West 96th Street neighbors and look forward to being part of the Upper West Side community for years to come."
