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Idaho Falls approves $2 million federal grant to underground downtown power lines
Summary
City Council authorized Idaho Falls Power to accept a $2,000,000 grant from the Idaho Governor's Office of Energy and Mineral Resources (federal IIJA funds) to move downtown overhead lines underground and cover secondary wiring costs for downtown customers; council authorized the mayor and city clerk to sign necessary documents.
The Idaho Falls City Council on April 17 approved Idaho Falls Power's acceptance of a $2,000,000 grant routed through the Idaho Governor's Office of Energy and Mineral Resources (OEMR) using Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act funds to underground electrical lines in the downtown alleyways and pay for customer secondary wiring replacements.
City Council President Burton Shaw presided over the agenda item and council voted to authorize the mayor and city clerk to execute necessary documents. The motion carried on a roll-call vote; council voting recorded included Burton Shaw (yes), Councilor Francis (aye), Councilor Freeman (yes), Councilor Larson (yes) and Councilor Bradford (aye).
Josh Roos, chief financial officer for Idaho Falls Power, told the council the OEMR was distributing IIJA funding to projects that strengthen existing infrastructure and reduce disruptive events to electric service. "We were awarded $2,000,000," Roos said. He said the utility must provide a 35% cost share for the project and that the grant money will be used to relocate downtown overhead lines to underground conduits and to cover the secondary wiring work that commercial customers normally own and would otherwise have to pay to replace.
Roos said an alleyway had already been completed under a previous grant and this award would allow Idaho Falls Power to complete the remaining three alleyways in the downtown area. "We're using this grant funding to pay for all of that secondary work so all of these commercial ... customers in the downtown area they don't have to pay any money to be able to have this done for them," he said.
Council members asked whether the dollars were federal funds flowing through the state; Roos confirmed they are federal funds administered by the state OEMR. The council liaison moved the authorization and the motion passed unanimously as recorded by the city clerk.
The council's action authorizes acceptance of the grant, confirms the city's cost-share obligation, and allows city officials to sign required grant documents. The motion did not include a project schedule in the public discussion; Roos noted work already completed under an earlier grant and said the award will fund the remaining downtown alleyways.
The council took the item as a regular-agenda action after Idaho Falls Power presented the grant terms and anticipated local obligations.
