DOMINION POWER: Please respond via email (admin@protectpwc.org) or on your public web site on this project. We want to be as accurate as possible we don’t worry people that will not be affected at all, but your web site is so vague we can image most people in this part of the county being potentially affected.
Questions for Dominion Power after reading their web page(https://www.dom.com/corporate/what-we-do/electricity/transmission-lines-and-projects/haymarket-230kv-line-and-substation-project) and following links on that page as of 1/5/2015.
Your short web site disclosure is very vague. It uses words like “likely” and suggests that things are not final. Given that is information on your web site legally binding to the actions you will take?
You have taken your route comparison table off your site … and given your copyright restrictions it has essentially vanished from public discussion. From our memory of what was in that table why did you not include some of the alternatives like “New Road” but added these alternatives to the map anyway? Did you do the same analysis before adding the routes?
You state that the Haymarket area needs more power in 2017. Can you provide the evidence of this and who will be this commercial or industrial customer?
Longer routes across the countryside would appear to a risk to reliability, especially to a rumored Intelligence Community data center. The “New Road” alternative has a number of elevation changes and crosses or fronts roads like Stormy, Lightning and Thunder.
In https://haymarketbeat.com/2014/12/04/dominion-offers-alternative-routes-for-haymarket-gainesville-power-lines/ your Dominion Power representative Mr. Penn states ‘that Dominion always seeks to find routes that have “the least amount of impact on residents, businesses and the environment.”’ If this is true how can 10-12 mile routes thought the countryside be a possibility when must shorter route outside the PWC Rural Crescent are available? Can you provide formula or guidance to how you and SCC balance need, cost, time to build, reliability, proximity to homes, the environment, the countryside and other places like churches, cemeteries, parks, PWC official historical areas?
You show two drawings of types of tower options for this project (https://www.dom.com/library/domcom/pdfs/electric-transmission/haymarket/typical-structure.pdf), but again you allow that this may change. When can you provide us a complete, binding and detailed description of all towers designs that may use in this project? There is some concern that towers that are either bigger or even more unattractive the those in the (hand?) drawing might be in the final design.
In your tower drawing as referred to above you don’t make it clear that large trees and branches of trees must be removed beyond the 120 ft wide easement, perhaps creating a 200 ft wide swath of tree removal. Will Dominion Power pay to replace any trees removed with trees of the same age, or 10 years old (if the original was older) with an independent contractor with placement at the property owner’s discretion?
You still state on your site the alternative lines are about 6 miles in length … why have you not updated this when you removed the “comparison of alternatives”?
Why did you not better inform the community of the new route alternatives that was only disclosed as a change to a PDF map Thanksgiving week … and we were lucky to find?
When you disclosed that you had new alternative routes with that Thanksgiving week change the site also stated that you were going to submit to the SCC in January (potentially just over a month during the Holiday season). Now you state it is “likely” you won’t submit until the end of March, 2015. Why did you change your expected data of submittal to the SCC?
When will you provide more exact dates for your public meeting and submittal to SCC? What is the number of days of notice will you provide the community for both these dates?
Will you provide a file with the coordinates you used in creating your PDF maps? It helps prevent our now needed eye-and-hand approach to estimating your route from missing details that might cause unneeded concern, especially for chronically ill or retired residents (who have a lot of their nest egg locked up in their homes).
Do you have coordinates for the placement of footers, towers and other supporting equipment? Will you post these for public use?
Why are roads like Waterfall, Antioch and Beverly Mill being followed when shorter routes (which should lead to a lower cost and more reliable line) when there are shorter and uninhabited routes available?
What is your compensation formula for homeowners who will have lines cross their property, vegetation or structures removed to support the easement (which is much wider that the width of the towers and wires), towers or equipment placed on their property.
Will anyone be compensated otherwise for simply being near or being able to see the lines, towers or equipment?
Are the existing residential scale power lines to remain?
If the existing residential power lines remain will they be relocated?
Will the ROW for the new 230,000 volt lines start at the inside edge of the easement for the residential power lines, thus forcing the 230,000 volt lines even closer to the property centers, and thus the home structures themsleves?
Will any homes need to be demolished?
What if an owner refuses your offer a Right-Of-Way? Is it true that The State of Virginia has granted Dominion Power the rights of a Condemner and can any private property without public due process?
In your Q&A you say that underground lines for 230 Kv are less reliable and more costly. Yet you are installing these in many other parts of Virginia and often site “improved reliability to weather” as a reason? So why is it OK for others but not us?
Will the Wheeler Road and New Road substations need to be upgraded to support this project? If so will additional transmission capacity needed to be added to existing lines.
Are there any areas or conditions that are definitely off limits for a route? Some of the current alternatives cross parklands and are close (within 1000 feet) to 1000s of homes churches, cemeteries and PWC Historical Areas so it looks like there are truly few restrictions. Please provide some definite no-use area and/or conditions so some citizens can rest better during this process.
What is the number and thickness of lines intended for this project. Can more be added later in a separate SCC filing?
Some residents saw Dominion Power people on their NOVEC easements. What authority grants these people power to walk these easements without notification or permission of the owners?
You had meetings after you released the Haymarket crossing routes … why not the same courtesy for residents in the area of new routes?
How do intend to cross the many Resource Protection Areas along the all the routes but the hybrid route? Do you need PWC approval (or any other agency)?
Have you discussed with VDOT options for using I-66, which is the shortest route that minimizes impact to homes and countryside?
In your Q&A part of the page you fail to mention restrictions of use of your easement. In other parts of your website you suggest that ATV use is restricted. Are there additional restriction to farming, horse riding? Is there any shock risk to farm equipment, horse riders or animals?
In your Q&A part of the page your suggest an appraiser of Dominion Power’s choosing will give you a fair appraisal of the impact that you will have some days to accept. What happens if the power does not accept?
This set of questions to Dominion Power is based on the contents of their website page on this project as of January 5, 2015 (https://www.dom.com/corporate/what-we-do/electricity/transmission-lines-and-projects/haymarket-230kv-line-and-substation-project). I would reprint an exact copy of the text used except it might be covered by the following copyright text:
You state (under a link at the bottom of the page https://www.dom.com/corporate/footer-folder/terms-and-conditions) that all the material on your site are copyrighted and can only be used by individuals … not groups. Fortunately your PDF map was released to the press (https://haymarketbeat.com/2014/12/04/dominion-offers-alternative-routes-for-haymarket-gainesville-power-lines/) and thus became a public source for this information. Your blanket copyright restriction forces groups to paraphrase your information which can lead to misunderstandings. Hopefully this is not the intent. Again, fortunately, reproduction of facts is protected speech. So, will you allow full public release of information related to this project? Do you consider it covered under Fair Use for non-commercial uses?