LAKEWOOD, Ohio — Over the last eight years, LakewoodAlive’s “Knowing Your Home” educational series has hosted dozens of free workshops helping homeowners with repairs and improvements.
During that time, the one subject matter that wasn’t addressed involved exterior lighting options. That’s about to change with the next “Knowing Your Home” event, taking place at 7 pm Aug. 25 at the Lakewood Public Library on Detroit Avenue.
“All of our workshops are special, but this one is a new topic,” Lakewood Alive Housing & Internal Operations Director Allison L. Urbanek said.
“Trying to stay fresh and new is a challenge at times, so we’re pretty excited we’re able to put this on, thanks to the help of designer Bryan Evans.”
Continuing the series’ mission of focusing on best sustainability and home maintenance practices while empowering homeowners, the new workshop is built around creating style and safety through exterior lighting options.
“We’ve talked about interior or exterior painting and improving your outdoor spaces, like your deck or porches, so this is kind of complementary to those topics,” Urbanek said. “How can we give our home a refresh?
“Not only does exterior lighting bring a fresh look to your home, but you can accentuate the really cool features we have here in Lakewood, where all of our homes are pretty architecturally pleasing to the eye.
“This can also add a little bit of security. Light allows you to remove dark corners from your landscaping while also bringing some beauty.”
The upcoming workshop finds Evans highlighting different aspects and price points of exterior lighting. These range from inexpensive solar-powered lights that can be planted in the front garden to higher-quality models.
Urbanek said another option is hiring a lighting company to install buried electrical wires that provide different pockets of lighting.
“We want to make outdoor lighting accessible and kind of digestible at all different levels for all different types of residents here in the community,” said Urbanek, who noted that so far interest in the exterior lighting workshop is high.
The upcoming event is one of 14 “Knowing Your Home” educational series events held this year, with the average attendance being 25 to 30 homeowners.
“Anything that has to do with landscaping, gardening and outdoor spaces has been a really hot topic for us,” Urbanek said.
“What’s really exciting about the series is that it’s free and open to anyone from any community. It’s a great way to bring people into Lakewood.
“It’s a free night out. Come out, learn a little something, go home and be inspired.”
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