PRESCOTT, AZ — Construction to install overhead power lines south of Prescott is delayed until 2027 as Arizona Public Service works to secure permits from the U.S. Forest Service and Yavapai County.
The delay is giving neighbors more time to continue fighting the project. Homeowners want the lines buried underground. They worry overhead lines will ruin their views and could spark a wildfire. ABC15 first detailed their concerns last year.
"Instead of looking at beautiful pine trees, which is the reason we bought the property, we'd be looking at power poles and power lines,” said Rob Croswhite, a resident who has called the unincorporated area home for five years.
APS plans to install overhead power lines along the road in front of his house and other homes in what is called the Walker Road Upgrade.
APS officials said the new lines would replace old ones to the west that are over a century old. Those power lines are difficult to access, making maintenance challenging, said Frank Sanderson, APS’s northern district director.
Sanderson said APS has made advances in fire mitigation and can safely operate overhead lines in higher fire-risk areas.
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The new project was expected to start construction this year, but that has been pushed back to 2027 because APS still needs permits from Yavapai County and the U.S. Forest Service. Those permits are necessary because the power lines would cross through county and federal land.
Some homeowners in the Walker Road area say they are still opposed to the overhead lines and are pushing APS to bury them. They have put signs in their yards, opposing the overhead lines, and are collecting petition signatures.
APS officials said they evaluated burying the power lines, but that approach presented several challenges, including being significantly more expensive. It would also require extensive trenching and blasting, they said.
APS held a community open house on March 11 to update residents about the project.
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