Evergreen Contracting & Irrigation designs and installs landscape lighting for homes in New Cumberland. Houses here sit close to the sidewalk and close to each other. A good design has to respect that. We plan every layout around your property and your neighbors. Free estimates arrive within a week, and repairs are scheduled in 1 to 2 weeks.
A Borough Where the River Meets the Creek
Jacob Haldeman laid this town out in 1814 and sold the lots by lottery. It became a borough in 1831, and it has been packed tight ever since. The whole place covers well under two square miles. It sits right where Yellow Breeches Creek runs into the Susquehanna.
That history left behind a compact street grid and small parcels. A property here is nothing like an acre out in the county. You are working with feet, not yards, between one house and the next. We plan for the space you actually have.
Aiming Light Close to the Property Line
Side yards in the borough are narrow, and twins share a wall outright. Point a fixture the wrong way and the beam lands in your neighbor’s bedroom. That is how good intentions turn into an awkward conversation. We settle the aiming angles before anything goes in the ground.
Shielded housings and tighter beam spreads keep the light on your own wall. We aim across a surface rather than out toward open air. Glare shields and louvers handle whatever spill is left. Your house looks right, and nobody next door reaches for the blinds.
The Alley Entrance Most Families Actually Use
Plenty of homes here park off a rear alley, some of them tight enough that a delivery truck will not fit. That back gate is the door your family uses every single day. It is also the spot that almost never gets proper light. Groceries, trash cans, and late arrivals all happen back there in the dark.
We light the parking pad, the gate, and the run up to the back steps. Fixtures sit low and shielded so the beam never blinds a driver coming down the alley. A motion sensor can cover the pad and shut off on its own. The front of the house still gets its full share of attention.
Working Around Mature Street Trees
The older streets here are lined with large, established trees. That canopy blocks light from above and throws shadows that move all night. Aiming an uplight through heavy branches rarely produces a clean result. We work with the canopy instead of fighting it.
A downlight mounted high in a tree drops a soft pool onto the lawn below. Through the leaves, the effect reads a lot like moonlight. Mounting hardware goes on with slack so the trunk can keep growing. We check those points during service visits so nothing cuts into the bark.
Designing Around the Streetlights Already There
A walkable borough has streetlights on nearly every block. Your front yard already carries a base level of light after sunset. Piling bright fixtures on top of that flattens the whole thing out. A good plan accounts for what the street is already doing.
We walk the property after dark before finalizing anything. That shows us exactly where the streetlight reaches and where it stops. Output stays modest on the lit side and picks up in the shadows. The finished result looks balanced instead of washed out. You can see the same principle in our outdoor lighting installation work across the region.
Fixtures Built for a Sidewalk Town
Front beds in the borough often sit inches from a public sidewalk. Snow shovels, foot traffic, and string trimmers all take their toll. A fixture in a bad spot gets knocked off its aim within one season. Placement matters just as much as the hardware you choose.
We set fixtures back from the walk edge and mount them on solid stakes. Wire runs stay clear of ground you dig, shovel, or edge. Where a bed is too narrow to work with, a wall mount solves it. These small calls are what keep a system out of the repair queue.
Getting Power to the System on a Small Lot
Older homes in the borough often have very few outdoor outlets. A low voltage system needs one safe, weather-protected connection point. On a lot this size, there are not many good places to put it. We sort that out during the site visit, not afterward.
Transformers usually mount on a rear or side wall, tucked out of view. A short run from that point holds voltage steady across every fixture. We size the unit with a little headroom for fixtures you may add later. Adding to the system down the road stays simple that way.
Why Choose Evergreen Contracting & Irrigation
Homeowners here want work that holds up and a company that picks up the phone. Here is what comes with your project:
- A track record on Central PA properties going back to 2001
- One crew trained in both irrigation and outdoor lighting
- A two year warranty covering every new installation
- Manufacturer coverage on the fixtures we put in
- A standing discount for military members and veterans
- Service plans set monthly, quarterly, or by the season
- A family owned business, locally run out of Dauphin County
We work across the West Shore, including nearby Lemoyne and Lower Allen.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will my lighting shine into my neighbor’s windows?
Not if it is planned properly. On borough lots this tight, light trespass is the first thing we design against. We use shielded fixtures, narrower beam spreads, and careful aiming angles. Every beam is pointed across your own wall rather than out toward the property line.
We also test the aim on site after dark. That is the only way to see exactly where a beam lands. If anything reaches past your line, we adjust it before we leave. Your neighbors should never know the system is there.
Can you light the alley side and the rear parking pad?
Yes, and on a lot of properties here that is the part worth doing first. The rear entrance sees more daily use than the front door. It also tends to have the worst footing, with uneven pads and old steps.
We light the parking area, the gate, and the walk to the back door. Everything sits low and shielded so drivers in the alley are not glared at. Motion fixtures work well back there since the space is used in bursts. Timers handle the rest so nothing burns all night.
Do streetlights on my block make extra lighting pointless?
No, they just change the plan. Streetlight is flat, cool, and comes from one high angle. Our fixtures work at low angles in warm tones, which is what gives a facade depth. We lower output where the street already reaches and add it where the shadows sit.
What happens as my trees keep growing?
Growth is the main reason a good system stops looking good. Branches fill in, beds spread, and fixtures that were aimed perfectly end up buried or blocked. Mounting hardware left tight against a trunk can start cutting into the bark.
Regular service handles all of it. We re-aim fixtures, clear plant growth, clean cloudy lenses, and check every connection. Tree mounts get loosened as the trunk expands. A system checked on a set schedule stays sharp for years.
How soon can you get me an estimate?
Free estimates arrive within a week of your call. Most installations then run one to three days on site. You get a clear timeline before any work starts. Our crew keeps disruption low and cleans up when the job is done.
Contact Us
Evergreen Contracting & Irrigation is ready to plan your project. We provide free estimates within a week, so you are not left waiting on a quote. Repairs get scheduled inside 1 to 2 weeks. Seasonal maintenance keeps the system performing long after installation day.
Call (717) 533-0606 or contact us today to book your consultation and get your property lit properly.