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Frequently asked
questions and their answers
Why replace the towers?
Tacoma Power completed construction on the Narrows towers and
lines in 1926. After nearly 80
years, the towers have reached their life span and require extensive and
expensive maintenance. Tacoma Power wants to replace the towers now to
ensure that they will not pose any safety risks in the future.
Financially, replacing the towers is more practical to implement and
comparable in cost to repairing the existing towers.
What does
the project cost and who is paying for it?
The project will cost $15.8 million. Tacoma Power will
pay up to $4 million and the Bonneville Power Administration will pay
the balance.
What is the
scope of the project?
The project scope includes replacing the four towers and power lines
that cross the Narrows waterway. In planning for the future, we took a
lesson from the past. As was done in 1926, the new towers and lines will
be designed to meet the area’s power needs for many years to come.
As part of that
future planning, BPA has requested that Tacoma Power upgrade the lines
to provide improved reliability. As with many major projects, the new
lines will be built to handle more electrical capacity than the existing
lines.
How
will
Tacoma Power customers benefit from the project?
Tacoma Power customers currently pay for ongoing maintenance of the
existing towers. Replacing the towers will be more cost-effective for
ratepayers.
Will this project
benefit people living in Gig Harbor and on Key
Peninsula?
This project is a win-win for Tacoma, and Gig Harbor
and the Key Peninsula. Tacoma Power
owns and operates the towers and power lines. Because Tacoma Power
needed to either refurbish or replace the towers anyway, it made sense
to incorporate Bonneville’s request for increased capacity into the
construction project. Because BPA requested the added capacity,
it
will pay for that portion of the upgrade—which is estimated at $8.1
million. Without the Narrows crossing, Tacoma Power could not transmit
power from the Cushman Hydroelectric Project to Tacoma.
How will this impact Peninsula
Light customers?
Peninsula Light, a customer of BPA, relies solely on the Narrows
crossing lines for its electricity. As growth on the Peninsula
continues, there will be a greater demand for power. Under normal
conditions the existing lines can handle the existing load, but future
growth could affect the reliability of service—especially during winter
months when there are greater demands for power, and outages are more
likely. Even today, extreme arctic weather conditions could create
reliability problems in the Gig Harbor area.
Tacoma Power, BPA
and Peninsula Light pride themselves on providing reliable service and
will make every effort to continue that reliability.
Does Peninsula Light
support this project?
Because the Narrows Crossing is the only source of power to Peninsula
Light, this project is extremely important. The number of customers
served by Peninsula Light increased from 6,000 meters in 1976 to 28,000
meters today. The upgrade to the lines must match the needs of Peninsula
Light under various contingencies. Peninsula Light supports the timely
completion of this project.
Is Tacoma Power
obligated to fill BPA’s request?
Tacoma Power signed an agreement with BPA in 1975 to share lines for
transmitting power, rather than BPA building duplicate facilities. The
two organizations have worked well together in that time and have
extended the agreement through September 2011. Sharing resources
benefits both parties. In some cases, we rely on BPA lines for
transmission of power. In this case, BPA is relying on Tacoma Power.
Will you keep the same
power lines?
No. The existing lines are made of steel. While steel is a very strong
material, it is not an ideal conductor of electricity. The new lines
will be made of aluminum with a steel core. The aluminum is a very good
electrical conductor and the steel will provide the strength needed to
cross a waterway more than a mile wide. The aluminum will make the new
power lines more efficient than the existing lines.
Will the
new lines be operated at a higher voltage?
Although the replacement lines can handle additional voltage, the
substations in both the Tacoma and Gig Harbor area cannot. From Tacoma
Power’s and BPA’s perspective, it makes sense to plan for the future,
but increasing the voltage of the replacement lines will not take place
for many years to come.
What other options did we explore rather than replacing these lines in
their current location? Why didn’t the other options work?
Tacoma Power looked at several options for adding capacity and found
that replacing the existing towers and lines would be the most
cost-effective and would affect the area the least.
Tacoma Power
evaluated the feasibility of placing equipment on the Narrows Bridges to
transmit power. That option would cost too much, could create safety
concerns and would present significant challenges in acquiring
additional rights of way. All of those reasons made that option
unrealistic.
Tacoma Power also
studied the feasibility of putting the lines under ground and under
water. Rapid tides, permitting issues, environmental damage and cost
prevented the project team from pursuing that option.
Why doesn’t Tacoma
Power repair the existing towers instead of replacing them?
Tacoma Power studied that possibility. The towers, which were completed
in 1926, would need a major overhaul. As with many structures built that
long ago, they’ve been exposed to harsh weather conditions and have
outlived their projected lifespan.
Tacoma Power would
face many issues in an attempt to repair the existing towers, but one of
the biggest challenges would be removing the lead-based paint that has
been on the towers since 1926. At the time, there were no known health
concerns connected with lead-based paint. Today, we know that lead-based
paint may cause health problems.
Removing the paint
from the towers would require extensive protection from exposure to
workers and residents living in the area. The towers would need to be
contained when removing the paint. Encapsulating the towers would create
a “sail” effect that could potentially cause the structures to fail.
What will the new towers
look like?
See the new tower
design concept.
What is the project timeline?
The project will be completed at the end of 2006.
How will construction affect the property owners near the towers and
lines?
People living near the towers may see and hear
construction. Crews will work from 7 a.m. to 6
p.m. Monday through Saturday most of the time, but may need to work
Sundays during critical phases.
Will the
construction affect the reliability of power?
Tacoma Power will schedule construction when the need for power is at
its lowest—in late spring and summer. By doing that, the potential for
outages in Tacoma and Gig Harbor decreases. Tacoma Power, BPA and
Peninsula Light share a common goal to provide reliable service to their
customers and will reach that goal by keeping one of the two lines in
service at all times.
Will the construction create safety hazards for residents in the area?
Safety is one of Tacoma Power’s main priorities. All Tacoma Power
employees who work in the field receive extensive safety training to
ensure their own—and your—safety. While Tacoma Power will not do the
construction work on the Narrows Crossing project, it will hold
Shaw Energy Delivery Services, the
company we hired to design and build the new towers, to the same safety
standards.
Any construction
area poses potential safety risks. The residents living in the homes
near the existing towers on the Tacoma side received detailed
information about the construction of the new towers before construction
began. While Tacoma Power and the construction contractor
will follow stringent safety standards, we feel it’s important for those
living in the area to know what’s happening in their neighborhoods.
What types of permits do we need? What is the permitting process?
Tacoma Power will apply for the same permits that other construction
projects require. Tacoma Power is required by the Washington State
Environmental Policy Act to follow certain environmental procedures.
Because BPA, a federal agency, will pay for part of the project, it must
follow the guidelines of the National Environmental Policy Act and other
applicable federal laws.
What are some
of the challenges of the project?
At 6,240 feet, the Narrows crossing is one of the longest electrical
spans in the world. Finding material that’s strong enough to cross the
span, yet serves as a good electrical conductor, requires innovative
thinking.
Another challenge
of this project will be to reconstruct towers in a small area. On the
Tacoma side, the existing towers sit on the edges of Tacoma Power’s
right of way. During construction, crews will need to work within those
property boundaries, with water on one side and houses on two sides. The
crews will also need to work around energized electrical lines that
provide power to homes in Tacoma and Gig Harbor.
Will the new towers require the same amount of maintenance as the
existing lines?
Tacoma Power decided to rebuild the towers to decrease the maintenance
costs. Tacoma Power’s diligence in maintaining the existing towers for
nearly 80 years has helped them outlast their projected lifespan. We
will maintain the new towers with the same diligence, but don’t
anticipate nearly the same maintenance costs for many years.
Do the lines pose a health risk to people living in the area?
Tacoma Power has tested the electric and magnetic fields near the lines.
The existing lines do not increase the milligauss measurement, which is
the amount of electromagnetic energy emitted from the lines, in the
homes surrounding the lines. The new lines should not increase the
milligauss measurement.
Will
this project be a model for other, similar projects?
There are very few projects that match the complexity of rebuilding the
Narrows Crossing towers and power lines. Two big challenges of the
project—designing towers that minimize intrusion in the community and
crossing over a body of water more than a mile wide—will, once again,
put Tacoma on the map for accomplishing an engineering and design feat.
We do believe that Tacoma Power will set
a new precedent both for design and construction—and for our level of
community involvement. We will encourage residents to participate in the
process, and want them to feel pride and ownership of the towers and
lines.
The towers have been there for a long time. Is there any historical
significance?
Both the towers and lines are an important part of Tacoma’s history.
Tacoma Power set a world record for the longest water crossing when the
lines were built in 1926. Newspapers touted the engineering feat with
headlines such as “Magnificent Electrical Span” and “Great Cushman
towers dwarf tallest buildings in Tacoma.” Tacoma Power built the towers
and lines to bring electricity from the Cushman Hydroelectric Project.
The project was significant enough to capture the attention of President
Calvin Coolidge, who flipped a switch in Washington D.C. to energize the
lines.
As the replacement project
progresses, Tacoma Power will document the history of the towers and
lines. Those interested in the history can access the project Web site
for history-related information. Tacoma Power is
working with a local historian who is preparing an in-depth historical
report.
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