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Consultants tell St. James council city’s electric load may nearly double; $3.2M–$6M upgrades recommended
Summary
Toth Associates told the council the city’s current system (~11 MW) could grow by roughly 10 MW in 10 years and recommended $3.2 million in short‑term subtransmission upgrades, a new south/southwest substation (~$6M by 2032), and further upgrades (~$2.2M by 2036); staff and council discussed phased design work and likely financing options.
Jeff Mueller of Toth Associates presented a 10‑year electric system study to the St. James City Council, saying the city currently uses a little less than 11 megawatts and the study’s forecast anticipates nearly a 10‑megawatt increase over the next decade. Mueller said the study focused on subtransmission, substations and distribution capacity and identified short‑term subtransmission improvements estimated at about $3.2 million needed by 2028.
Mueller said a primary recommendation for 2032 is a new substation on the south‑southwest side of town to provide local capacity and backfeed options where growth is expected, an element priced at roughly $6 million in the study. Additional subtransmission and substation upgrades were scoped for about 2036 at an estimated $2.2 million. He explained that each line and transformer has capacity limits and that without upgrades the city could face voltage drops, reduced reliability on hot days and potential forced outages if a major subtransmission line is lost.
Council members asked whether distributed generation — for example, solar and battery storage — would alter the need for these upgrades. Mueller said distributed generation can address some local issues and peak‑capacity concerns but that his firm’s study did not include a cost‑benefit or rate analysis for local generation; he recommended the city coordinate with its wholesale provider (MPA) and incorporate any resource‑planning decisions into an upcoming rate/cost‑of‑service study already underway.
Mueller urged the council to begin 10–30% engineering designs for projects the study recommends so the city can obtain more accurate costs before construction. He gave examples of how design choices — poles, foundations and conductor type — materially affect project cost, and noted that phased work and bond financing are common ways municipalities pay for multi‑year utility upgrades. Council members agreed phasing and early design work make sense and noted limited bond capacity and scarce grant availability at present.
The presentation did not adopt policy decisions, but it laid out a sequence of potential capital projects and estimated costs for council consideration. Next procedural steps discussed included authorizing preliminary design work, coordinating with the utility’s wholesale provider on transmission limits, and incorporating recommended projects into the city’s capital improvement plan and budget process.
