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City staff warn multi-day outage possible to replace worn substation component; temporary-power options costly
Summary
City utilities staff said parts for a worn substation load tap changer have arrived and that replacing it will require a full outage of the substation for up to four days; staff estimated roughly $300,000 for parts and labor, and a mobile substation quote carried a $480,000 minimum cost, prompting discussion of generator alternatives and timing to avoid disrupting schools and critical services.
The city’s utilities staff told councilors that parts for a worn low load tap changer arrived this morning and crews will have to take the substation offline to replace it, causing a potential multi-day outage that could affect large swaths of the city.
Steve, the utilities presenter, said the replacement will require ‘‘an entire blackout on that one substation for upwards of 4 days’’ and that staff’s "conservative estimate is about $300,000 for the low tap changer and the labor to replace it," including contractor work. He told councilors the part had been delayed for months, and staff were relieved parts finally arrived.
The city considered short-term power options while the work is done. Steve said a mobile substation vendor quoted "$80,000 per month with a minimum of a 6 month contract," which would amount to about "$480,000" under those terms — far higher than the repair estimate. Councilor Nick suggested using "a big generator" as a potentially less expensive alternative, though staff warned matching the right voltage and integrating a generator would still require careful engineering.
Staff said the outage could affect more than one-third of the city, hitting west and south neighborhoods and several essential services. "It covers a lot of our essential services," Steve said, listing the sheriff’s intake, school-district facilities and portions of the hospital among sites that would be affected. He added that the hospital has some backup generation but that it "does not cover all of the systems in the hospital."
Councilors pressed staff on timing and availability. Steve said the city upgraded its SCADA system and has a load profile to help plan a controlled outage; he also said he expects a clearer timeline for scheduling the work within a week or two now that parts are in hand.
No formal action or vote was taken during the meeting; councilors and staff discussed options for scheduling the outage to minimize impact on schools and critical services and to pursue the most cost-effective temporary-power solution.
The council did not set a repair date during the meeting; staff said they would report back with scheduling options once configurations for temporary power are clarified.
