Tree-clearing plans frustrate homeowners
Residents of the Liberty Highlands subdivision want to keep things green under the high-voltage transmission lines in their neighborhood. Photo By C.T. Kruger
The prospect of less green has residents of one Brookfield subdivision seeing red.
Transmission lines that carry 345,000 volts of electricity the north-south length of the city via a 125-foot wide swath of land run directly through Liberty Highlands subdivision.
That land is scheduled to be cleared of all vegetation - including trees - that could interfere with the utility lines at some point in the future.
But homeowners are worried that stripping lots in the subdivision could be a blow to property values. And, of course, there's also the unappealing prospect of clear-cut lots lurking outside picture windows.
"It's going to look like a train's going through," resident William Hotz said. "It's not pretty."
Utility holds firm
Residents and city officials have met with representatives of American Transmission Co., which took control of the former We Energies easement about six years ago, but no compromises have been reached.
For his part, Mayor Steven Ponto sees where the residents are coming from - and he believes ATC is being unreasonable.
"They have a very aggressive policy of clearing trees that could, however theoretically, become a risk in the future," he said. "If a tree is going to be more than 8 feet high, they'll clear it when it's 1 foot high. I, myself, think it's an overreaction."
Ponto said he "urged restraint," but it seems ATC representatives on the ground have no authority to deviate from the company's policy.
Residents grow frustrated
Resident Mike Mendola said he and his neighbors recognize ATC's right to manage vegetation on the easement, but that hasn't made the situation any less frustrating.
"Their ham-handed attitudes have made it worse," he said.
ATC's appeals process and communication with residents seem more a formality than a remedy for a problem, Hotz said.
"Anyone who gets in touch with them gets the same company line. It doesn't seem to vary from place to place, and it's frustrating," he said. "What we would like to see is something a little more sensitive to the neighborhood, and to the city."
Liberty Highlands residents could be just the first to bare the scars of ATC's new policy, Ponto said. The easement also runs just west of homes along Gebhardt Road, and also through a portion of the Glen Kerry subdivision, before tapering into the Fox River Conservancy and Mitchell Park.
Utility gets tough
Mary Carpenter, a spokeswoman for ATC, said the policy shift is in response to widespread power outages out east caused by overgrown vegetation on easements.
"We've revised our standards to reclaim these easements and keep them clear of trees and vegetation to the extent that's possible," she said. "Before, unless it was an imminent danger (We Energies) just did pruning and trimming, but unfortunately those days are over."
American Transmission Co. was created in 2001 by utility companies throughout the state to own and manage 9,500 miles of transmission lines.
"If We Energies still owned these assets, they would be doing the same things we are right now," Carpenter said. "There has to be a certain amount of clearance between wires and trees. … A tree doesn't have to touch a line to cause a problem. … A tree could catch fire just by the close proximity."
Not much flexibility
In some cases, Ponto said, ATC is cutting down trees and ordering changes to landscaping within the easement that We Energies once approved.
"In the past when we dealt with We Energies about this, there seemed to be much more flexibility," Ponto said.
But Carpenter said clearing the easement is in the best interest of safety and the company's liability.
"For the higher voltage lines, anything over 240,000 volts, if there is an outage caused by a tree, utilities can be fined, and that fine is pretty stiff. Not to mention the inconvenience to millions of people," she said.
Carpenter said plans to clear the high-voltage easement are scheduled to move forward - though she was unable to give a specific start date - and ATC will revisit the issue again in five years.
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"Liberty Highlands residents could be just the first to bare the scars of ATC's new policy.." Did the reporter mean "bear" the scars?
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"It doesn't seem to vary from place to place, and it's frustrating," he said. "What we would like to see is something a little more sensitive to the neighborhood, and to the city."
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Back to topWG - Sep 02, 2010 12:22 PM - Report Abuse
What about underground power lines? My neighborhood has no overhead lines.
bmused - Sep 02, 2010 10:46 AM - Report Abuse
Translation: We're Brookfield. We're special. We're mad becaus we're not getting our way. Who cares how many people might be impacted by a power outage caused by our trees?