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CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
City of Anaheim
PUBLIC UTILITIES DEPARTMENT
DATE: JULY 23, 2024
FROM: PUBLIC UTILITIES DEPARTMENTS
SUBJECT: PROPOSED FIVE-YEAR UNDERGROUND CONVERSION
PLAN FOR FISCAL YEAR 2024/25
ATTACHMENT (Y/N): YES ITEM #02
GOVERNMENT CODE § 84308 APPLIES: NO
RECOMMENDATION:
That the City Council, by Motion, approve the proposed Five-Year Underground Conversion Plan for Fiscal Year 2024/25 (Proposed Plan).
DISCUSSION:
The Public Utilities Board (PUB) recommended that the City Council approve the Proposed Plan at its meeting on June 26, 2024.
Anaheim Public Utilities (APU) prepares an update on the Underground Conversion Program to outline the status of ongoing projects and include new project(s) proposed by the Underground Subcommittee (Subcommittee), comprised of Planning Commissioners and Public Utilities Board members, into the five-year planning process. New projects are identified using adopted criteria which include coordination with other City projects, electric reliability and technical considerations, geographic diversity across City Council Districts, street right-of-way aesthetics improvements, and available funding.
At the February 28, 2024 Subcommittee meeting, six candidate projects were evaluated and presented to the Subcommittee for consideration. At the May 22, 2024 Subcommittee meeting, two projects on Broadway from Magnolia Avenue to Dale Avenue, and on Nutwood Street from Ball Road to Orange Avenue were recommended to be included in the Proposed Plan for PUB consideration.
Additionally, at the July 16, 2024 City Council meeting, Council Member Meeks requested a review of options to accelerate the removal of telecommunication facilities that remain overhead long after electrical systems have been removed. Staff’s efforts to coordinate with telecommunication companies and recommended next steps are included in this staff report.
Background
The City Council, on June 5, 1990, approved a Citywide Underground Conversion Program (Program) to convert electrical and communication lines located along the City’s major roadways from overhead to underground. The Program has evolved with several Proposed Five-Year Underground Conversion Plan for Fiscal Year 2024/25 July 23, 2024
notable enhancements that included a rebate program in 2007 to allow residents, who do not live on those major roadways, to underground their service lines to their electrical panel. In 2017, the Program was expanded to include other types of roadways that may be undergrounded for reliability purposes such as at freeway crossings or areas subject to wildfire threat.
The Program provides many benefits to residents and businesses including enhanced electric service reliability for customers served by the new underground facilities, upgraded street lighting for improved roadway visibility, as well as aesthetic improvements along Anaheim's roadways. The Program targets approximately 240 circuit miles throughout the City. A circuit mile is the length of a set of high voltage wires carrying electricity.
Through Fiscal Year 2023/24, APU has completed undergrounding 140 circuit miles, or 58% of the planned overhead circuits.
Underground Districts (Districts) are established by resolution of the City Council, which requires telecommunication companies to work with APU to underground their overhead facilities within the District’s boundary. The cost for converting APU’s overhead facilities to underground is funded by a 4% surcharge included on Anaheim customers’ electric utility bills. Approved Districts require coordination with other departments and agencies that may have impacted facilities. Additionally, APU coordinates with property owners to discuss any impacts that may be caused as a result of project activities, and in some cases, to obtain property access and easements for placement of electrical equipment.
Residents and businesses are informed of upcoming undergrounding through mailed notifications about District formations. Customers also receive an informational letter and flyer prior to the start of construction, and postcards are provided at least two weeks prior to planned outages with a door hanger 48 hours before the outage. Furthermore, when electrical construction is complete, residents and businesses are notified when street paving is scheduled. Information is available on the City’s website and on project construction signs. Customer surveys are sent out following project completion to obtain feedback for improvements on future projects.
Proposed Plan
The Proposed Plan includes thirteen projects carried forward from the current plan, and Broadway and Nutwood Street added as new projects (Attachment 2). The Subcommittee prioritized Broadway and Nutwood Street based on their overall project costs and reliability improvement considerations along these corridors.
Broadway and Nutwood Street are both estimated to cost $5.3 million, and each project will underground approximately half a mile of overhead lines. The projects will be coordinated with affected utilities, and joint trenching will be offered to underground phone and cable TV lines. Broadway and Nutwood Street are tentatively scheduled to begin construction in Winter 2030 and Summer 2031, respectively, and will be closely coordinated with adjacent schools to work around student pickup and drop-off schedules.
Progress Update
There are four projects where electrical undergrounding has been completed and overhead electrical wires and equipment have been removed. However, the subsequent removal of telecommunication company facilities and remaining utility poles are still pending. APU is Proposed Five-Year Underground Conversion Plan for Fiscal Year 2024/25 July 23, 2024
currently assessing different options to accelerate removals by telecommunication companies, including potentially introducing an ordinance with financial consequences for late removals. These projects are as follows:
Dale: Overhead electrical facilities on Dale Avenue, from Ball Road to Crescent Avenue, have been placed underground. Cable TV is currently working to underground its facilities and is scheduled to be complete by the end of 2024. Orangewood: The overhead electrical facilities on Orangewood Avenue from west of Harbor Boulevard to the Santa Ana River have been placed underground.
Telecommunication companies are continuing to work on undergrounding their facilities and are scheduled to be completed by Winter 2024. Santa Ana Canyon: The City’s portion of the undergrounding on Santa Ana Canyon Road, between Lakeview Avenue and Imperial Highway, is complete and poles have been topped down to telecommunication level. Final street paving and striping have been completed. The remaining telecommunication companies are currently working to underground their overhead lines and are estimated to be complete by Spring 2025.
Sycamore: Undergrounding of overhead electrical facilities along Sycamore Street from Anaheim Boulevard to East Street is complete. Final street paving will be completed as part of the Public Works Department’s street improvement project.
Remaining overhead telecommunication facilities and poles are planned for removal by Spring 2025.
The following projects are under various stages of design or construction:
Beach (In Construction): The undergrounding on Beach Boulevard from south of Ball Road to north of Lincoln is currently under construction. This project is an integral part of the Beach Boulevard Specific Plan which outlines the improvements to the Beach Boulevard corridor that also include roadway and property improvements, signage, and upgraded street lighting. The undergrounding is currently being coordinated with Southern California Edison (SCE) and affected telecommunication companies for joint trenching. Construction started in October 2023 and is estimated for completion in Winter 2025.
Cerritos / Nutwood (In Construction): Underground construction on Cerritos Avenue from Nutwood Street to Euclid Street, and on Nutwood Street from Katella Avenue to Ball Road is currently in progress. The project is currently being coordinated with the affected telecommunication companies for joint trenching to minimize disruption, and with the Public Works Department for final street paving.
Construction started in May 2024 and is anticipated to be completed by Spring 2026. Wildfire Mitigation Underground in Fire Threat Zone (In Review): The project includes seven remaining segments of overhead lines that are located within/adjacent to the various Fire Threat Zones as identified under APU’s current Wildfire Mitigation Plan. The design for the Wildfire Mitigation Undergrounding Project has been completed and was funded through a phased grant awarded by the Federal Proposed Five-Year Underground Conversion Plan for Fiscal Year 2024/25 July 23, 2024
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). FEMA is reviewing the design, and APU is awaiting their approval prior to issuing a construction bid, which is tentatively scheduled for late 2024.
Olive / Vermont (In Design): Undergrounding on Olive Street from South Street to Vermont Avenue; Vermont, from Anaheim Blvd to State College Blvd; and South Street from Anaheim Blvd to Olive Street is currently in design. The project will underground high voltage electrical and telecommunication facilities as well as two railroad crossings. The project will coordinate with adjacent schools, businesses, residents, city departments and other utilities and agencies. The schedule for the start of construction is Summer 2025 and is estimated for completion in Summer 2027. La Palma / East (In District Formation): The project is along La Palma Avenue from East Street to State College Boulevard, and is currently in the district formation process. Notifications to affected property owners will be issued and a public hearing is planned for Fall 2024.
The balance of projects in the Proposed Plan are in various stages of planning. A complete list of projects and estimated construction schedules is included in the Proposed Five-Year Underground Conversion Plan for Fiscal Year 2024/25 Projects List (Attachment 1).
Additionally, APU has submitted a grant application for funding through the U. S.
Department of Energy under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) Program. The grant seeks $83 million in funding to underground Ball Road from Anaheim’s west city limits to Euclid Street as well as to modernize outage management technology systems. The project would incorporate undergrounding of Southern California Edison (SCE) and telecommunication facilities. If awarded, APU would seek Subcommittee, PUB, and Council consideration for inclusion into a future plan.
Accelerating Removal of Overhead Telecommunication Facilities Since 2016, 10 undergrounding projects have been completed. Telecommunication companies have taken an average of 2.4 years to remove their overhead facilities. There are six telecommunication corporations currently operating in Anaheim with overhead facilities, and their delayed removal of facilities are typically due to having infrastructure projects throughout the region, not solely in Anaheim.
APU has evaluated different options to accelerate removal of telecommunication facilities associated with undergrounding projects. Several proactive methods have been utilized in the past with mixed results, including assisting with permitting costs and removing poles after overhead lines and equipment are removed. APU therefore recommends moving to a focused regulatory structure through an ordinance that provides specific timeframes and daily penalties for non-compliance. The details of an ordinance will be developed and presented to the Public Utilities Board and City Council at a later date.
The Underground Conversion Program Five-Year Plan supports multiple goals in the 2023-24 Strategic Plan. These include Goal A – Maintain Fiscal Responsibility, Strategy 2 - Continue proactive pursuit of state and federal grant funds, Goal C – Invest in Infrastructure and Amenities, Strategy 4 - Improve, enhance, beautify, and maintain major Proposed Five-Year Underground Conversion Plan for Fiscal Year 2024/25 July 23, 2024
street corridors, and Strategy 7 - Seek opportunities to underground SCE lines along major corridors.
IMPACT ON BUDGET:
There is no budgetary impact as a result of approving the Proposed Plan. Funds for individual projects are subject to City Council approval of construction bid awards.
Respectfully submitted,
Dukku Lee
Public Utilities General Manager
Attachments:
1. Proposed Five-Year Underground Conversion Plan for Fiscal Year 2024/25 Projects List
2. Map of Proposed Five-Year Underground Conversion Plan for Fiscal Year 2024/25