Frisco, Texas Struggles to Coordinate Water, Electricity, and Road Upgrades

"The city of Frisco is proposing a way to bury a high-voltage power line on the city’s west side that won’t cost substantially more than the overhead line that many nearby residents oppose as unsightly," reports Valerie Wigglesworth.

Both the utility, Brazos Electric Power Cooperative Inc., and the Public Utility Commission of Texas are sticking to their plan for an above-ground line. The plans for the above-ground lines running along the median of a yet-to-be-determined arterial in the area also conflict with the city's plan to widen those roadways.

The city's proposal for running the 138,000-volt line under ground combine the lane widening projects and retrofitting of under ground water lines. " By coordinating the projects, the city would cover the costs of trenching and repaving that the utility would normally have to pay. It estimates the utility’s savings from the joint effort to be about $10 million," adds Wigglesworth.