Harbor Springs council picks site for new power substation
HARBOR SPRINGS — The Harbor Springs City Council has taken another step toward finalizing a location for the new substation coming to the city.
The council approved by a vote of 4-1 moving forward with plans to place the substation at the property known as Black Forest Farms. By going forward with this option, the substation will likely be placed at Hoyt Road with distribution lines buried underground.
The estimated cost is $6,435,000, which is $567,000 more than the originally planned location at the Harbor Springs Deer Park. An additional cost would be applied to the Hoyt Road location as well to help camouflage the substation.
The proposal allows for a substation to be built adjacent to the existing transmission line right-of-way with the 46kV transmission line underground parallel to Bester Road, according to the project memo from GRP Engineering.
The property is currently owned by David and Cathy Evrard. If the property can be purchased for a price agreeable to the city and Evrards, they will move forward with it. The Evrards are also awaiting response from tax professionals to determine if the land could be tax deductible if the land were to be donated to the city.
Michael McGeehan from GRP Engineering spoke to the council about the pros and cons about burying lines. He said not being able to see the lines is a pro, and the power lines are more reliable underground if installed properly. However, the lifespan of an overhead system is typically shorter, he said. Additionally, the cost to put in an underground system is typically higher than an overhead system.
Subscribe: Get unlimited access to our latest offers
Assuming the property owners and city can come to an agreement, the location is final. City manager Victor Sinadinoski said he’s hoping to have a tentative agreement for the city to get the property before the end of February.
The councilmembers went back and forth comparing the different locations, with Nancy Rondell, the only councilmember who voted no to move forward with the location on Hoyt Road, saying she thinks the Deer Park location is the best option.
She said she felt better with more security available to look over the property, with the police station nearby.
The approval puts a tentative end to discussions that have taken place for over a year, though the engineering will not begin on the property until an agreement is made between the city and property owners.
— Contact reporter Karly Graham at kgraham@petoskeynews.com. Follow her on Twitter at @KarlyGrahamJRN.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Harbor Springs finalizes location for new substation
