The City of St. Albert will pay $115,000 to bury an overhead power line along the Sturgeon River in Braeside.
FortisAlberta is upgrading its distribution line that spans the river near Berrymore Drive and runs through Red Willow Park along the southern edge of the river.
The company approached the city to see if council was interested in paying for the cost of burial rather than have the mature trees in the park cut back substantially to allow work on the overhead lines.
The trees in the area haven’t been brushed for about 15 years, the company said. The total cost to bury the 330-metre stretch of line is $115,439.12.
Council voted in favour of taking the money from its stabilization reserve, which sits at $2.1 million.
“This is an opportunity to maybe fix a previous wrong,” said Coun. James Burrows. “We need to make an aesthetic upgrade.”
A meeting between the city and a Braeside neighbourhood group determined community support for the burial, said the city’s background report.
Coun. Gareth Jones and Mayor Nolan Crouse both voted against the expenditure, feeling the project was unnecessary.
“We really have to question why we would spend $115,000. That’s a lot of money,” Crouse said. “It’s not compelling enough.”
He wondered if the city would have to start burying power lines elsewhere where overhead lines exist.
Overhead power lines are mostly present in Mission and the older part of Braeside, said city manager Bill Holtby.
City administration felt burying the line would improve the aesthetics and safety of the area, by having the poles and exposed high voltage lines removed from sight. In the past the city has included the costs of burying power lines as part of redevelopment projects. In new subdivisions, the developer covers the cost.
FortisAlberta expects to begin the burial work in early November and finish by the end of that month, said spokesperson Kate George.
