Over 50 people turned out last week for an open house on AltaLink’s proposed $200 million redevelopment of the Red Deer transmission grid.
AltaLink spokesperson Robin Boschman said the open house was an opportunity for interested Innisfail residents and stakeholders to get information on stage two and three of the four-stage redevelopment plan. Boschman said 59 residents signed in at the Aug. 3 open house, which ran from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 104.
“It was a great turnout,” Boschman said. “It’s good when people come out to the open house and come and ask us their questions and provide us with their input.”
Stage two will involve rebuilding 75 kilometres of existing transmission lines near Red Deer and Sylvan Lake. Stage three will involve the construction of a new substation and five kilometres of transmission line near Ponoka; a new substation and 15 kilometres of transmission line near Innisfail; a new substation and two kilometres of transmission line near Didsbury; and 15 kilometres of transmission lines east of Lacombe. About 25 kilometres of transmission line between Red Deer and Innisfail will also be removed during stage three.
Innisfail resident Greg Morris said he attended the open house to get more information, noting a transmission line could cross his property under one of the proposals being considered.
“It gives you a better idea of what they’re planning,” Morris said when asked why he attended. “I don’t really want it but I guess it has to go somewhere.”
The fourth and final stage will involve the removal of about 75 kilometres of existing line between Wetaskiwin and Lacombe.
Construction of stage one of the redevelopment, which involves upgrading six substations in the Red Deer area, could begin as early as next spring if the company’s application is approved by the Alberta Utilities Commission, Boschman said, adding AltaLink intends to file its application for stage one in about a month.
Most of the transmission system in the Red Deer area is between 40 and 50 years old, Boschman said. The population of area towns and cities has grown by over 100,000 in that same span.
“You don’t need to look far around central Alberta to know how much it has grown and how we’re using electricity differently,” she said. “The need for the transmission system upgrade is apparent.”
The company will take the information gathered at the open house to narrow down possible locations for the new Innisfail substation and the associated transmission lines, Boschman said. They will then return in the fall for another round of public consultations.
Boschman advised anyone who missed the open house and had questions about the redevelopment plan to go to www.altalink.ca/reddeer for more information or to contact AltaLink toll-free at 1-855-520-1923 or via email at [email protected]. The company’s Red Deer project office, located in the San Remo Room at the Capri Hotel, is also open on Wednesdays from 12 to 8 p.m. until Aug. 31.
“(People) can contact us in any number of ways,” Boschman said. “They can call us, email us, (or) write to us.”
"You don't need to look far around central Alberta to know how much it has grown and how we're using electricity differently. The need for the transmission system upgrade is apparent."
Robin Boschman
AltaLink spokesperson
