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Background
Arizona Public Service (APS) is currently considering potential corridors for a power line between the TS-9 substation in Peoria to the TS-5 substation in Buckeye. There are two potential corridors through Peoria: one along State Route 74 (SR74) and one on the Carefree alignment, three miles south of SR74.
The City of Peoria Position
The City of Peoria believes without reservation that SR74 is the appropriate corridor for this power line. The city is absolutely committed to ensuring the power line is built within this corridor. The cities of Surprise and Buckeye have also stated their support for the SR74 corridor for this project within Peoria city limits.
Support for this Position
The City of Peoria supports the SR74 alignment because:
1. The SR74 corridor minimizes impact to existing and future residents
The Carefree alignment runs through an area of Peoria that contains Vistancia, a nationally recognized master planned community. Residents and builders in Vistancia (and the builder of the planned Saddleback Heights community) are steadfastly opposed to the Carefree alignment.
For future development, Peoria’s General Plan designates this area as a combination of residential housing, mountain preserve and desert open space. Several thousand Peoria residents already call this area home, and thousands more will live there in the future. Construction of a 120 foot-tall high voltage transmission line in this area is not compatible with existing or future development. To build the line here would be an example of everything citizens criticize government and utilities for – lack of planning and disregard for public opinion.
The SR74 alignment, on the other hand, presents none of these issues. While some development will occur in this area, placing this transmission line within a corridor that is already home to a two-lane highway (which will eventually be expanded to a multi-lane freeway) will have very little impact to existing or future residents.
2. The SR74 corridor minimizes the impact to the environment
The Carefree alignment bisects some of Peoria’s most scenic desert. Although development is planned for this area, it is primarily low-density residential that will be limited by the area’s mountainous terrain and subject to the city’s Desert Lands Conservation and Hillside Development ordinances.
The environmental impact of creating a new power line corridor in this native desert would be significant. Since there is no existing corridor, the native plants would have to be cleared or moved. New access roads to build and maintain the power lines would have to be cut (and likely paved to comply with countywide dust control measures), and views of the Sonoran Desert foothills would be forever altered by the 120-foot tall power poles anchoring power lines stretched up and over the mountains.
Because of the additional effort required to build in this mountainous terrain, it is likely that this alignment will actually cost more for APS to build versus the SR74 alignment – additional costs that may be passed along to ratepayers.
The SR74 alignment, however, does not have the same environmental impact because it is adjacent to an existing highway that will more than double in size and capacity in the future. The incremental impact of adding the power line corridor along this corridor is practically nil when compared to the impact of taking the lines through, up and over what is currently undeveloped desert.
Summary
Peoria, adjacent governments and area residents are united in support of the SR74 alignment for the APS power line project between the TS-9 and TS-5 substations. This position is based upon the eminent negative impact to existing and future residents, and to the natural environment.
May 27, 2008 |
