Council approves National Grid/Verizon mid‑span poles with reclosers after no public opposition

The Marlborough City Council on July 20 approved petitions from National Grid and Verizon to install mid‑span utility poles with recloser equipment on Pleasant Street and Sudbury Street, after applicants described the devices’ outage‑mitigation benefits.

John Rupia, representing the applicant, told the council the pole for Pleasant Street would be a 50‑foot Class 2 mid‑span pole labeled P3‑50 located between existing poles 3 and 4. He said the pole will include a recloser, “an automatic ... electrical switch ... which controls, it can switch in case of catastrophe,” and that the device “can automatically shut off the power and turn off the power without having the crew come to the scene.”

Rupia described the Sudbury Street installation as a similar mid‑span pole (LEHI 36‑50) that would include a recloser to help the utility respond faster to outages. The council followed its standard four‑stage public‑hearing process (applicant presentation, questions from the public, public opposition, and council questions). No members of the public spoke either in favor or opposition at either hearing.

Councilors moved and seconded approval of both petitions with the conditions recommended by the city engineer; both motions passed unanimously, recorded as 10–0. The city clerk read the order numbers and the engineer’s recommended conditions into the record before each vote.

Why it matters: reclosers are intended to limit the number of customers affected by transient faults (for example, tree limb contacts or temporary surges) by isolating faults without a manual crew response, which the applicant said reduces outage durations for residents.

What’s next: the petitions were approved with the city engineer’s conditions. Any required permits and utility coordination will proceed as specified in the approved conditions. The council then continued its agenda, including several bond votes and other items.