Heber Light & Power

Midway City Council meets on Tuesday with a full agenda, including a public hearing and possible adoption of an ordinance amending the code for cannabis production. Open space preservation projects will be discussed, and The Council also plans to approve the settlement on the Rocky Mountain Power and Heber Light and Power transmission line project.

Rocky Mountain Power, Heber Light and Power and Midway City have reached a settlement to install new above ground power lines in Midway. The resolution was presented to the public in last week’s council meeting.

The Heber Light and Power Board voted to terminate their investment in the Nu Scale nuclear power program resulting in a total loss of a little overdue to off ramp fees and the original investment.

Heber City Mayor Kelleen Potter is on the Board of Directors and says she voted in favor of pulling out of the carbon free investment because the Department of Energy had backed out. This would leave small cities like Heber in line to be the first risk should something go wrong with the project once it comes online.

Wasatch County Council will discuss the elimination of library late fees, a land swap with Heber Light & Power and Mayflower Mountain Resort at this Wednesday’s meeting.

The choice to place high voltage transmission lines overhead or underground through Midway is getting close to a decision point. Rocky Mountain Power hopes to have bids to place lines underground by the end of February, leaving Midway about a month to finalize funding to bury the lines.

Members of the Valley Opposition to Large Transmission lines, or VOLT, are busy working to raise $1.5 million to fund the burial of about a one mile stretch transmission lines that will go through Midway City, but the clock is ticking on that effort.

Midway residents will have two opportunities this week to learn more about and express their opinions on the Rocky Mountain Power and Heber Light & Power Transmission line which will run through the city.

The proposed transmission line will connect the Midway Substation to the Jordanelle Dam substation and go through Midway city limits for about a mile. The route follows existing transmission lines along Wards lane, Stringtown road and 970 South. The proposed poles range in height from 70-85 feet with dead end and crossing poles reaching from 80-110 feet above ground.

The idea of power lines, possibly as tall as 100 feet, running through the Heber Valley has some residents up in arms, but members of the Heber Valley Light and Power board think they might have found a way to mitigate citizens’ concerns.

Heber Valley Light and Power and Rocky Mountain Power are working to install transmission lines spanning from the Jordanelle Dam to the Midway substation, about ten miles, but Heber Mayor Kelleen Potter says the facilities committee may have found a solution that could possible reduce the impact of the powerlines on the view corridor.

Heber Light & Power has a new executive board made up of the three mayors from Heber, Midway and Charleston.  It’s a complete turnover in leadership and with that comes a big change in direction.  Carolyn Murray has this: