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Friendswood EDC continues planning to remove downtown overhead power and communications lines, awaits TNMP proposal
Summary
The Friendswood Downtown Economic Development Corporation discussed multi-million-dollar estimates and technical barriers for burying downtown electrical and communications lines and directed staff to continue coordinating with Texas-New-Mexico Power and the city consultant before returning with a formal proposal.
Friendswood Downtown Economic Development Corporation Chair (name not specified in the transcript) said the board will continue pursuing data from Texas-New-Mexico Power and its consultant before taking any formal action on removing overhead electrical and communications lines downtown.
Board members and staff outlined why the topic matters: burying electrical service and communications lines would remove poles and overhead clutter in the downtown area, but initial cost estimates and legal/engineering barriers mean a full relocation would be expensive and may require phased work.
City staff described the current status and costs. Steven (staff) said the corporation has asked Texas-New-Mexico Power (TNMP) to work with the city’s consultant on either a full relocation or a phased plan. He told the board the city has heard ballpark figures from utilities and peers: “for a full relocation of those types of services you are looking at, around $1,000,000 for every 1,000 linear feet,” and staff noted that figure referred to electrical work only. Based on that rate and initial utility estimates, staff gave a broad, preliminary downtown range between $8.36 million and $8.76 million for relocating electrical service along roughly 7,000 linear feet on one side of downtown; staff cautioned the numbers are preliminary and offered “a grain of salt” qualifier.
Board members pressed on what would and would not be included in that estimate. Staff and board members emphasized that communications lines, reconnection of service to individual businesses, and easement acquisition are additional costs not included in the initial electrical-only estimates. A board member noted easements may be required where the right-of-way is too narrow to place cables underground, and staff said those potential easement costs were not yet accounted for.
On implementation status, staff said TNMP is reviewing metering and billing agreements through its legal department and that on the physical side, crews have installed 91 of 112 expected foundations/pole combinations downtown. Staff also said AT&T crews have been removing some communication lines from conduit where applicable, and the city expects to energize certain sections once agreements and metering are complete. No construction timeline or final cost proposal was presented to the board.
The board’s direction was procedural: continue coordination with TNMP, the city engineering office and the consultant; gather firm estimates that include easement requirements and service reconnection costs; and return a formal proposal when those numbers and legal determinations are available. Chair (Friendswood Downtown Economic Development Corporation) and multiple board members agreed to keep pursuing communications-line removal as a potentially attainable phased project even if full electrical undergrounding remains uncertain.
The discussion produced no binding motion or expenditure; staff will return with a recommendation when TNMP and the consultant provide a definite scope, cost, and any easement requirements.
