Tower City Lights Go Dim To Protect Migratory Birds

Putting ecological mindfulness before aesthetic intrigue, Tower City Center is starting to dim its lighting at night. The fact is, those bright lights - at times red, green, orange, etc. - actually disorient flocks of birds making their way across town.

"The lighting does have the potential to confuse the birds during spring and fall migration," Jeff Linton, senior vice president of corporate communication for Forest City Enterprises, says.

Located along the lake, and just a stone's throw from O Canada, Cleveland finds itself in the middle of a particularly busy Migratory Superhighway. Combine that with our skyline and the fabulous Northeast Ohio weather, and you've got yourself one owl of a problem (sorry).

Beginning around midnight each night, the tower's lights will dim (except for the uppermost dome). They will remain that way until about 4 a.m.

This measure, called for originally by the Cleveland Museum of Natural History a few years back, doubles as an energy-saver.

Beyond the night-to-night stuff, the tower's ability to host a more colorful lighting program stems from Forest City's 2010 renovation of Tower City. The 2013 schedule has a pretty robust lineup of offerings.