The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
“It will be a major ordeal…”
A major electrical project will get under way in Crested Butte this Monday, June 14. The Gunnison County Electric Association (GCEA) will be replacing the overhead poles and lines, resulting in some electrical interruptions throughout the summer.
“It is a project that has been needed for a while,” explained GCEA COO Roger Grogg. “Most of these lines have been there since the late 1930s or early ’40s. It will be a major ordeal but in the end, the system will be safer and more reliable and the pole line will look nicer.”
Grogg said a five-man crew should complete two of the three phases of the project by Thanksgiving. The third phase will be completed next summer. The GCEA has contracted with Colorado Powerline, a company with experience changing these types of lines and poles. But the change-out will come at a price. The project will cost the GCEA membership more than a half-million dollars and Crested Butte consumers will likely see an increase in temporary power outages this summer.
“This project isn’t cheap, but if we tried to place the lines underground, it would be four to five times as expensive and have to be paid for by the members of the GCEA, the town and the homeowners,” Grogg said. “We are doing everything we can to minimize the outage impacts to residents and businesses, but if you are on the line from the pole we are changing, your electricity will be out for a while. There will be interruptions, no doubt. And for the whole town, we will be on a super-sensitive trip mechanism to help protect the personnel working on the lines and the public in general.”
When a pole is being replaced and the transformer is changed, power could be down for three hours or more. “Some poles will be a piece of cake to replace and we will be using alternative feeds whenever possible to keep people in power,” Grogg said. “We will also try to be aware of specific situations. For example if a dinner restaurant will be impacted, we’ll try to change out the pole in the morning instead of when they open for business. We’ll do our best to accommodate everyone, but we expect that there will probably be a few unforeseen situations that may lead to some complaints.”
The crews will attempt to touch base with anyone who would be affected a day or two before power is cut off as the poles are replaced. “The members will definitely see the crews moving in their direction. We will place door knockers if we cannot make personal contact,” explained Grogg. “One of the contractor’s goals is to keep people as happy as possible and give notice of outages.”
Grogg promises that when the work is complete, the power lines will look nicer, be straighter, be compliant with the current National Electric Safety Code and also be five feet taller to help accommodate telephone and cable television needs.
The work will commence Monday at Whiterock Avenue and Fifth Street and move west up Whiterock to First Street.
