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Industrial Complexes in Paradise, Part Two |
Bill Hudson | 7/9/10
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Read Part One
I’m wondering.
How do we — modern Americans living in the southwestern U.S. — determine what is beautiful, and what is ugly?
Do we, as a culture, view industrial structures as inherently unattractive? What is it, in our minds, that defines a pine tree as beautiful — and a telephone pole, made from a pine tree, as ugly?
 Mark Weiler, the president of Parelli Natural Horsemanship, stood at the podium on Tuesday afternoon and asked the Archuleta County commissioners to deny a Conditional Use Permit request by La Plata Electric Association (LPEA), based on just such aesthetic concerns. LPEA wants to replace a tiny electrical substation with a much larger and taller electrical facility — to be located across the highway from the entrance to the Parelli Ranch, an equestrian training facility. By Weiler’s estimate, the new substation will be 39 times the size of the current substation.
Does Archuleta County want a moderately large electrical complex located at what Weiler described as “the gateway” to Pagosa Springs? And what would we be willing to pay, as citizens, to locate it elsewhere?
In response to a question from audience member Teri Frazier at Tuesday's meeting, LPEA’s engineer Ted Bowes (sp?) described the main benefit of the new substation as providing “increased reliability to the electrical system.”
“The substation that is there now is 36 years old. It’s made basically out of wood poles that are rotting and contracting. Eventually, it’s going to fail, and there is going to be a large power outage. That’s the basic benefit to the county.”
Frazier asked if there were another place in the county to locate the new substation.
“Yes. For a large cost, yes.”
Frazier turned to the County commissioners.
“This is a personal statement. I know there are other people in the County who are on oxygen. And if this [new substation] is going to provide a more reliable electrical system for the county, it’s certainly needed. I know where I live, we have power outages every single winter and every single summer. So in order to have a more reliable system, I’m certainly in favor of this project.”
Frazier was the only person to speak in favor of the new substation. And Weiler was the only person to speak in opposition.
Weiler noted that the new substation was not, technically, an “expansion” or “upgrade” to the tiny existing substation. The new substation will be a totally new substation, on a totally new parcel of land next to the old substation. Weiler suggested that the new substation is therefore not “grandfathered in” and must meet the Archuleta County Land Use Code — a code which did not even exist 36 years ago when the original substation was built.
Weiler presented photos of LPEA’s Stevens Lake Road substation, which Weiler described as the approximate size of the proposed new substation planned for the location across from the Parelli Ranch entrance.
Yesterday, I drove out to the site of the old substation and took a photo of my van next to the fenced electrical structures there. Continued...
I then drove out to the Stevens Lake substation and took a picture of my van parked next to that substation. Continued...
Yes, that little white dot to the far right in the photo: that’s my van.
Mr. Bowes did not detail what amount of money he had in mind when he suggested that the substation could be located elsewhere, other than across the highway from the Parelli Ranch, "for a large cost". Nor did he explain whether the currently proposed location is convenient mainly for real estate reasons (because LPEA already owns the land?) or for engineering reasons (because the power lines already lead to this location?)
So we are left, for the moment, with a simple phrase: “for a large cost.”
LPEA is one of the largest employers in Archuleta County — probably on par with Parelli Natural Horsemanship. I’ve experienced LPEA as one of the more environmentally and socially conscious companies in Archuleta County. The cooperative association — of which I am proud to be a "member customer" — has been actively pushing green energy and energy conservation, and has also been involved — as Weiler noted during his opposition speech — in the Archuleta Economic Development Association since its founding. LPEA was one of the main companies behind the recent “Safety Fair” held at the Centerpoint Church parking lot last month. Continued...
An LPEA employee demonstrates safety around electrical equipment as a young child looks on, during the community Safety Fair last month. |
So no one is questioning LPEA’s social consciousness, nor is anyone questioning LPEA’s claim that relocating the substation to another county location would entail some considerable expense.
What Mark Weiler was questioning on Tuesday was the Board of County Commissioners’ willingness to adhere to its own County land use plans, its Land Use Code — and its commitment to locate ugly industrial complexes in places other than at the community’s “entrance gateways”.
At the County Planning Commission meeting last night, a member of the public stopped me in the hallway and tipped me off to a rumor that LPEA is planning perhaps three more of these massive substations, to be located in various residential areas around the county.
That same meeting had earlier been discussing the proposed Eagle Mountain Gravel Pit, currently planned to go in the midst of a quiet, rural residential neighborhood.
So I’ve been thinking a lot about industrial complexes lately, as you might imagine.
As we have seen, (at least, those of us who regularly attend planning commission and county commissioner meetings have seen,) the County’s Community Plan exists as an almost meaningless document. Nearly every square inch of privately owned land in Archuleta County is zoned for “agricultural use,” meaning that almost every development project — electrical substation, equestrian training facility, veterinary clinic, shopping center, mixed use residential area — has to apply for zoning changes and conditional use permits.
And because our community leaders are so deeply committed to “economic development”, it is almost impossible for them to even conceive turning down a development request, no matter where it might be located in the county.
You want to build a high density, mixed use, commercial and residential subdivision in the midst of a rural residential area? No problem.
You want to build a subdivision without the two entrances required by the Land Use Code? A simple variance will take care of that problem.
You want to generate thousands of new daily traffic impacts on roads that are already in bad shape? Why not.
You need a gravel pit for building subdivision roads? We can work that out for you.
But when LPEA wants to build a huge electrical substation at the western gateway to Pagosa Springs — an industrial complex which will have zero traffic impacts, will generate zero noise or dust, and will provide better electrical reliability for the entire county — we must pause and consider the aesthetics of the situation.
Is this thing going to be ugly?
So I’m back to my original question. How do we, modern Americans living in rural Colorado, determine what is ugly and what is “out of place”?
Read Part Three... |
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