Traverse City Record-Eagle

Breaking News

Grand Traverse County

December 10, 2008

TCL&P moving forward on power-line project

$250,000 to be spent on design, engineering

By MELISSA DOMSIC

Related Content

To view before and after conceptual renderings of the proposed power lines along Grandview Parkway and M-72, see our photo gallery »

TRAVERSE CITY -- Electric utility officials approved spending $250,000 on design and engineering for a west side power line, amid mounting uncertainties surrounding the project.

Traverse City Light & Power's board of directors hopes to run an upgraded electrical transmission line down M-72 to Bay Street, parallel to Grandview Parkway. It would connect to Wolverine Power Cooperative's proposed electrical substation at the corner of M-72 and Bugai Road in Elmwood Township.

Several hurdles exist, and Light & Power could end up spending money to design a power line that might never come to fruition. Ed Rice, Light & Power's executive director, wrote a memo to the board acknowledging that it could be "a non beneficial expense."

Still, board members unanimously approved the payment of an estimated $250,000 for design and engineering.

"We can not move forward with M-72 as a viable option unless we go through this process," board chairwoman Linda Johnson said of the need for design and engineering work.

Elmwood Township has to approve the project, and Light & Power officials fear township residents will fight it in court. The township's permit process likely requires completed engineering and design work, according to the utility's attorney.

Light & Power plans to hold a public meeting in Elmwood Township in late January to gather residents' opinions on the utility's proposal to install 85-to-90-foot tall poles along M-72.

Officials revealed at Tuesday's Light & Power meeting that portions of the line would run through Garfield Township, adding another potential bureaucratic barrier.

Board members also are unsure whether Light & Power customers want the line installed above or under ground along Bay Street. They plan to conduct a survey to gauge interest in funding the multi-million dollar venture.

They agreed on Tuesday to go ahead with preliminary design work, but hold off on any activity involving the Bay Street section until the survey results come back.

The Light & Power board spent the past year debating possible routes for the power line after Slabtown residents disputed the utility's original plan to run the lines through Hickory Hills and along Wayne Street.

That has already delayed the project, and issues with Elmwood Township could postpone it another two years, Rice said.

The line would serve as an additional power supply into the city. Further project delays add to the risk of power outages, he said.

"We're basically running without a seat belt, a smoke alarm or insurance for that additional two-year period of time," Rice said. "If we don't start on the design pretty soon, it's going to be a 2013 end project."

Text Only