Quote:
Originally Posted by A-town
You'd think the city would make it a requirement for developers to bury powerlines on their lots.
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It's encouraged, but not required.
Utility burial is extremely expensive and would have killed several deals I've worked on if it had been mandated. The cost is not the burial on the site per se, but also the issue that you can't just bury them for one site and you must get approval from all groups that use the lines, not just Georgia Power. When you bury, all buildings that use the lines must also be completely required to current electrical code. So if developer "A" decides to bury then, and small business owner "B" across the street has to go to an underground feed, owner "B" must spend thousands to rewire his or her buildings. You can see the problem. This is why their are still lines on Auburn Avenue - there was money before the games but the building owners fought burial because of the cost to them of re-wiring.
In my opinion, most developers will pay to bury if it's easy, because it improves their projects, but the burden really should be on the public, Georgia Power, other utilities to pay. I, for one, would be willing to pay a surcharge on my bill if it meant utilities would be buried.
Lastly, regarding streetscapes, it is illegal under US law to use Federal streetscape funds (Q-23, CMAQ, TE, etc.) to bury power lines. All power line burial funds must be funded by local governments.