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Aztec commission tables $75,000 transmission tie-in study after debate on multi‑million dollar costs
Summary
City commissioners debated adding $75,000 to earlier study funding for a proposed WA 345 kV tie-in, covering route design, application fees and a Western Area system impact study; after concerns about total costs and outstanding questions, the body voted to table additional spending until a December workshop.
Aztec commissioners voted to table further spending on a proposed tie-in to a WA 345 kilovolt transmission line after a wide-ranging discussion about study costs, routing complications and long-term equipment needs.
John, a city staff member who presented the project, said the work before the commission would design the tap and transmission route, including about 16,000 feet of line crossing Bureau of Land Management land and a section on state land, and examine options including undergrounding near school and residential areas. He outlined near-term costs: a $3,500 application fee, a Western Area system impact study estimated at about $50,000, and total application/design-phase costs approaching $188,000. He also warned that major transformers could cost between $3.5 million and $4 million apiece and that overall project costs could reach into the tens of millions.
“Once that line leaves that substation, it will be on BLM land for about 16,000 ft,” John said, describing the routing and the need to stake and design where the line would go. He added the city may choose to bring the 69 kV line into the existing substation rather than build a new one to reduce land and construction costs.
Several commissioners expressed concern about proceeding without answers requested in an earlier workshop and about committing study dollars before federal or Western Area approvals. “I think we're moving ahead before we get some of the answers … it's my concern we’re spending $140,000 for studies without accomplishing some of the stuff that you told us in that workshop,” said Commissioner Crowley.
Commissioners discussed financing scenarios, including borrowing for a roughly $30 million build and using debt-service options to recover costs, but they also raised worries about debt-service pressure on ratepayers if interest rates rise. The mayor and other commissioners said the application work could proceed if authorized but noted there was no urgent deadline that required immediate approval.
After debate, a commissioner moved and a second followed to table the item until after a December 2 workshop so new and returning commissioners could review the materials and staff could provide outstanding information. The motion to table carried on a roll call voice vote; a formal tally was not recorded in the transcript.
