Power agency aims to rebuild aging line

The Bonneville Power Administration will hold public meetings next week to discuss rebuilding the 66-year-old Kalispell-Kerr transmission line.

Meetings in Polson on Monday and Kalispell on Tuesday will consider the BPA’s plan to rebuild the 41-mile wood-pole line between Kalispell and Polson.

The line has aged over the decades since it was built in 1947, according to a news release from the BPA. Although routine maintenance has been performed on the line, all the wood poles and conductors need to be replaced due to age and deterioration.

The proposed project may require developing new access roads and improving existing ones.

Construction would begin in spring 2016.

“Our project team looks forward to talking to local residents,”  project manager Amanda Williams said. “We value the details offered by the public about the surrounding area and its environment. Public comments help to guide the development of the environmental assessment.”

At the public meetings, community members can ask questions, voice concerns and share local knowledge about the potential impacts the environmental assessment should address.

The meeting in Polson will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Monday at Polson City Library.

The Kalispell meeting on Tuesday is from 4 to 7 p.m. at Edgerton Elementary School.

People who cannot attend the meetings can learn about the proposed transmission upgrade at www.bpa.gov/goto/KalispellKerr.

Comments can be submitted to www.bpa.gov/comment. Comments are due by June 28 for the Kalispell-Kerr Transmission Line Rebuild Project.