August 15, 2007

Overhead electric lines removed from Moore Park

By LOU PENDLETON

In an ongoing effort to beautify city parks, the last strands of overhead electric lines in Moore Park were taken down this month. The Bryan Electric Department relocated the circuit that runs along the bike path behind Washington School into conduit underground.

Brian Carlin, electric superintendent, said Bryan Municipal Utilities and the Parks and Recreation department have been working together over the past five years to move the overhead high voltage lines in the park underground.

“It has been a joint effort,” said Mr. Carlin. “In the process, we also upgraded the 4 kV circuit to 12 kV and energized it on the new Cherry Street Substation for more reliable power.”

Bryan Parks and Recreation Department provided the labor to dig the open trench and put the conduit in. The electric crews pulled the new wire into the conduit and set new transformers. Bryan Municipal Utilities also purchased historical lighting to put along the bike path at a cost of $16,000.

The electric crew switched customer services over to the new line, de-energized the old line and finished removing it last week. Time Warner fiber and Verizon telephone lines were also put underground in the conduit. BMU has a remaining communication fiber overhead that will be rerouted to Center Street and incorporated into the outer fiber ring for the city of Bryan.

“The project was another example of the electric and parks departments working together to make the parks free of overhead wire,” said Ben Dominique, parks and recreation director. “Although it is not completely finished, it will be in time, and we are grateful to the electric department for their help.”

Mr. Carlin pointed out that the new underground electric circuit will be untroubled by ice, wind, tree limbs and squirrels, and with no bare energized high voltages overhead, the parks will be safer. “People can now utilize all the open air space of our parks,” he said.

The electric crews will continue converting the west side of town from 4 kV to 12 kV, working in the area of Navarre, Newdale and Blakeslee Avenues. Mr. Carlin said that this work will begin the process of eliminating overhead lines in Garver Park.