Study: Putting electricity lines in ground costly

Tahlequah Daily Press
By Mike Elswick

A study that could help advance beautification efforts in parts of Tahlequah by taking overhead power lines underground indicated such a move would have a steep cost.

Doug Somerhalder, manager of power engineering with Oklahoma City engineering, architecture and consulting firm of C.H. Guernsey, told members of the Tahlequah Public Works Authority and Tahlequah City Council Friday that he looked at four different sites in the city for conversion of overhead lines to underground.

He said the firm was asked to look at what the installation of decorative light poles replacing traditional wooden poles would be, and tied that cost to moving electric lines underground in the four specified areas.

Somerhalder said the estimated price per foot for an overhead line varies from about 44 cents to $1 a foot. That price would skyrocket to about $8 a foot by taking the lines underground. He attributed much of the cost associated with specific areas to the areas' already highly developed, high-traffic locations.

Among the locations reviewed were sections at Crafton and Cedar, Grand Avenue, Fourth Street from Campbell to Muskogee Avenue and Fourth Street from Campbell to Hillcrest. Somerhalder said said converting to underground power lines at the corner of Crafton and Cedar would cost about $279,000.

"The cost at South Muskogee could vary a lot because there are so many obstacles, and it is so congested it would add to the boring cost," Somerhalder said.

To convert power lines in the vicinity of Fourth Street, Campbell and Muskogee Avenue would cost an estimated $1.18 million to $1.4 million, he said.

Somerhalder said those areas would require more boring under streets, instead of the less-costly trenching and burying lines that could possibly be done in less-developed areas.

"We're seeing more new construction going underground, while not so many places are doing conversions" of overhead to underground, he said.

City Councilors Josh Bliss and Stephen Highers asked how such conversions would impact customers. Somerhalder said the cost would likely have to be factored into utility bills, which would have to go up for customers to absorb the additional expense.

"I'm sure there would be additional cost," Somerhalder said.

TPWA Chairman Jerry Cook said the TPWA board is continually learning just how complicated the city's electric power grid is. He questioned the authority's responsibility for needing to work with property owners, who would be impacted for property easements should a decision be made to take utilities underground.

Highers also asked if there is a long-term cost savings by going underground with power lines instead of overhead. Somerhalder those costs for maintenance for underground systems are usually higher than for overhead lines.

No action was taken on the cost reports. Cook said the TPWA system has a high level of reliability, while maintaining a lower cost than many other communities around the state.

"We have a 99.98 percent reliability and our cost compares very favorably to other communities," Cook said.

He said the TPWA board and management prides itself on providing a high level of value to customers and plans to continue doing that.