FORT COLLINS – Following weeks of squabbling and the threat of a lawsuit from Fort Collins, the Platte River Power Authority’s eight-member board voted unanimously Thursday to stall construction on a high-power transmission line to Loveland.
After more than two hours in a closed-door executive session in which the board received legal counsel, Loveland Mayor Cecil Gutierrez made a motion to delay construction on the third phase of the seven-mile, 230-kilovolt Dixon-Horseshoe line that would feed redundant power to his city and help prevent blackouts.
The motion requires Fort Collins to come up with alternative means to complete the circuit with the help of a “nationally recognized engineering consultant,” hired by Fort Collins officials and the Platte River Power Authority staff. PRPA will pay up to half the consultant’s cost, and Fort Collins the rest.
The results of the consultant’s study must go before the Fort Collins City Council by Oct. 18, and the council must decide on next steps to move the project forward.
Get more at .
