[July 15, 2011] EDITORIAL: Buried utilities make sense [Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Iowa] Tweet (Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier (IA) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) July 13--When the city of Cedar Falls began discussing a mandate to move electric, cable and other service lines underground last year, we were in full support. That support hasn't wavered despite a recent appeal by a telecommunications company. Officials from Qwest telecommunications, which has merged with CenturyLink and taken on that name, had argued the mandate would be expensive and require abandoning utility poles that are in good condition. In the end, the City Council voted unanimously to reject the company's appeal. We applaud the council for sticking to a plan we believe is in the best interest of the community at large. Cedar Falls Utilities has been moving electric lines underground in many areas of the city, in part as a response to a 2009 windstorm that resulted in millions of dollars in damage to utility lines and lengthy and widespread power outages. Local communities had a reminder Monday of what can happen in severe storms. Power lines in Dysart dangled into the streets after a storm moved through. Electricity was knocked out to tens of thousands of customers in east central Iowa. Areas of U.S. Highway 218 were shut down near Vinton due to downed power lines. It has long been the goal of the city of Cedar Falls and its municipally owned utility to relocate all above-ground utilities underground. For the past 15 years the Cedar Falls Subdivision Ordinance has required that utilities services in new residential, commercial and industrial subdivisions throughout the city be installed underground. That includes any lines from a public utility company, cable operator or video service provider that provides telephone, cable service, video service, Internet or any other telecommunications service to the general public. During the appeal hearing, a CFU representative said relocating lines underground costs $7.50 to $8 per square foot. CFU electric then requests $1 per foot from Mediacom, CenturyLink and CFU cable to share the costs. It is our belief this is fair and equitable. While we can empathize with CenturyLink, they also would see the benefits of having buried lines, safe from whatever is happening above ground. This is a logical strategy aimed at damage prevention. The upfront costs are significant, but the plan has the potential for saving a lot of money over the long haul. Throw in the aspects of improved safety and more pleasing neighborhood aesthetics, and the plan sounds even better. ___ To see more of the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.wcfcourier.com/. Copyright (c) 2011, Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Iowa Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For more information about the content services offered by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services (MCT), visit www.mctinfoservices.com, e-mail [email protected], or call 866-280-5210 (outside the United States, call +1 312-222-4544) [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]