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Commissioners ask staff to evaluate power-line corridor as possible express route
Summary
Commissioners pressed staff to study whether the utility easement running through Sienna could serve as an express corridor or emergency route; city engineer cautioned utilities often restrict public use of easements and staff will examine precedents.
During the May 6 workshop, Commissioner Salloway asked whether staff had considered routing a connector along the dual power-line corridor that runs through the center of Sienna as a way to move traffic quickly to FM 521. "Is it possible to look at using that?" the commissioner asked, noting the corridor crosses Waters Lake and Sienna Parkway and could provide a central express route.
City Engineer Vincenzo Carraza said staff can consult with power companies but warned that utilities typically do not allow public roads within their easements for security and maintenance reasons. "Usually, they don't like to have anything within their easement," Carraza said, and added that if the utility does not own the land outright the city would have to negotiate with each property owner who granted easement rights. Commissioners asked staff to research precedents where utilities allowed overlapping easements and to report back before the May 13 package.
