This image was taken in the 1940s of a snowy Huntsville town hall and post office, at night.

Some of us like the unpretentious strings of clear lights casually draped from the town hall facade to the sidewalk as shown in this photograph.

These days – and nights – most lights are turned off when not in use, for both economic and environment reasons.

Any downtown building, facade, or street lighting should balance the impact on night skies for healthy natural rhythmic cycles with the safety and visibility for evening users to enhance the health of the retail and service economy.