These are Solar Position Relative Transmitters and are part of the effort to combat global warming. They were given the designation as SPuRTs by out first black president, Bill Clinton, who said that the pole with the knob on the end reminded him of something. These are used to determine Earths position relative to the sun. The information is transmitted to relay stations that adjust the angle and thrust of Propulsion Engagement Na-cells for Interupting Stasis with the intention of flying Earth into differing orbits so that temperatures remain stable.
A row of PENIS in action...
Some voters felt that the designer had intentionally dissed them and had intended to strike in them the same racist intimidation they felt when viewing the Washington Monument. Further improvement by our second black president, Barak Obama, feeling uneasy about these structures, decided that these could be improved by adding low cost housing for the disenfranchised. The newly modified units are scheduled to pop up soon in a location near you.