Frisco Residents Petition Against Proposed Electric Substation
Follow CBSDFW.COM: Facebook | Twitter
FRISCO (CBSDFW.COM) - Frisco's explosive growth may seem unstoppable, but something has to power all the new developments under construction. A new electric substation will be part of that, but battle lines are being drawn over where to put it.
Oncor has asked the city for permission to build the substation on Legacy Drive across from Allen Elementary School, in part because easy access to transmission lines would make it a relatively quick build, but many of the people who live nearby say the company should find someone else's backyard.
The Cowboys new world headquarters is almost complete, and that's just the beginning of construction along Frisco's so-called Five Billion Dollar Mile. The utility company responsible for keeping the lights on at all the new projects is asking the city for special permission to build a distribution substation near hundreds of homes.
"If I knew that at some point down the road there would be a substation or some sort of utility there, I would have chosen a different house," Jamie Heit said.
The land in question wasn't zoned for a substation. Now Oncor is asking for a change, and more than 1500 people like Heit have signed a petition to try to stop the company.
"I think they realized fairly quickly by how quickly we were able to organize a large group of residents. I think it showed them that we were serious," Heit said.
A spokesperson for Oncor tells us they asked to delay this week's Planning and Zoning vote for a permit until next month, so they can get more information on alternate sites, but the priority is still the location across from Allen Elementary. Heit says she's confident P&Z will ultimately side with homeowners, but Oncor could appeal to the city council or even to the Texas Public Utility Commission.
"If they continue to try to proceed with this spot, the residents are willing to stay in it for the long haul," Heit said.
You can actually see the Cowboys' Omni Hotel being built from the proposed site. That proximity is part of the appeal of the location. Oncor also tells us if they have to build somewhere without easy access to the transmission lines, that could give the project an even bigger footprint that a neighboring community may not like either. Ultimately all sides agree, it's not a matter of if the substation will be built, but where.
(©2016 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
