What's
happening under the Edison
Lines?
(last
updated July 14, 2007)
Immediately Adjacent Edison Land
Edison has owned the parcels immediately west of our area since
at least 1932. Until the 1940s, there was a vineyard covering
them as well as the parcels west to the wash and (north of Del Vina)
east to Sierra Madre Villa. During the late 1940s and early 50s,
a dairy located where Sunnyslope park (the hilly one) is now used the
land for grazing. Homeowners who were here during that time
remember green fields, cows, and flies. About 1955, Orange Grove
Blvd was cut through and the dairy was gone.
From
the late 1950s
until November 2004, a plant nursery occupied the space under the
adjacent Edison wires to our west. This provided us with a nice
buffer, quiet and dark at night, greenery and not usually a lot of
activity in the day. The nursery had also helped keep the Avocado
roadside outside their fence cleaned up and in more recent years had
kept large boxed trees there providing visual relief to the chain link
fence.
The nursery's lease was terminated to make way
for building the revised Viña Vieja park plan. The
original plan was long and skinny, entirely between the wires and the
wash. The revised plan broadened and shortened the park,
including space
under the wires to leave the originally planned space to the south
available
for the proposed ice rink. However, we are now stuck with a weed
patch south of the park under the wires.
During the latter stages of planning for the park, it was discovered
that the eastern rank of high-tension lines droop too low to the ground
from north of Las Lunas to south of Del Vina and therefore public
access could not be allowed to the area under them. This is why
the
white fence built on the south end of the park under the wires jogs
north and then east again, and why the pedestrian path from our
neighborhood is so oddly located. (Just ignore the fact that
nothing actually blocks you from walking from the path and going under
those wires.) Edison has been requested to determine what it
would take to raise those "too low" wires.
Because the land under the wires is in part off-limits, and the rest
would be difficult to access for any just about any usage, we are faced
with the prospect of a permanent poorly maintained weed patch next to
us. City planners originally were thinking about using some of it
for parking for the ice rink, but currently there is no plan to do
so. While a parking lot would not be particularly desirable, at
least it would have to have some landscaping and the city would be
responsible for upkeep. It might also have taken some
responsibility for the Avocado roadside. Edison mows the weeds
two or three times a year to keep the fire danger down, but otherwise
takes no
improvement responsibility.
We have asked that the city at least improve the "parkway" between the
street and the Edison land. At least a curb and gutter to direct
the water flowing off of it, and landscaping. While there is some
sympathy, the cost is considered to be too high. At one point,
there was agreement by the City Council to at least consider
landscaping in conjunction with the ice rink development, but that
estimated $65,000 item fell by the wayside. Landscaping on the
eastern edge of the ice rink project will shield ice rink patrons from
the full weed view just as the white fence shields park users.
There is also some potential for improvement related to the pedestrian
path to the park, which will have to be relocated when the ice rink is
built. But no plans have been made public. Trying to
maintain our neighborhood quiet is a double-edged sword since if the
street and the weeds were more broadly visible the city would be more
likely to put some priority on improvement.
We have discussed doing some landscaping ourselves. On their own
initiative, some nearby homeowners have put some plants next to the
fence hoping to grow some screening. The big problem is lack of
water. And of course, anything done without city approval is
subject to being demolished.
In a Pasadena Star News article on June 29, 2007 regarding negotiations
that allowed Perssons Nursery to stay past the previous June 30
deadline, there was mention that part of a potential deal with the
developer holding rights from Edison includes "augmenting Viña
Vieja Park". There is no further description of what that means,
but it could mean extending it under the wires along Avocado Ave if the
high tension wires were raised.
Potential Development, including
Self-Storage
In 2006, plans were submitted to the city by a developer to
place self-storage under the Edison lines to the north and south of our
immediately adjacent segment. After a public uproar, those plans
were retracted. They are now working on revising
them.
A fuller explanation of those controversial plans and response to them
can be found here:
Potential Development,
including Self-Storage
High-Tension Lines
Southern California Edison is proposing an upgrade of
the capacity of the high-tension wires that go past us. The lines
adjacent to us are
in "segment" 11 of the tentative proposal, with a scheduled completion
date of 2013. It would involve adding another 220 KV circuit to
the existing 220 KV circuit on the existing western rank of
towers. Each such circuit consists of 3 vertically separated
lines. If you look at the western row of towers, you will see
that there are lines on the west side of the towers, but not on the
east side. The new circuit would be on the east side.
The eastern rank of towers already has two 220 KV circuits on it.
The polarity of one of those circuits would be changed so that the
total electromagnetic radiation after the changes may on average
actually be less then it is now.
Pasadena Water & Power owns the Goodrich power substation located between the lines
and Eaton Wash just north of Foothill Blvd. All power that
Pasadena receives from elsewhere or generates and sells to the grid
comes through this substation. Pasadena is not expecting to gain
any new capacity from the new circuit and the new lines are expected to
simply pass by the Goodrich substation.
Edison is having a number of "open houses" in the second
quarter of 2007 to take comments and questions. There was one in
Pasadena on April 16. Attendance was light. Invitations
were sent to property owners within 300 feet of the lines and there was
an article in the Star News several weeks before.
Edison is filing the necessary permit applications in the summer of
2007.
Edison has a web site dedicated to the full project, including maps and
more detailed descriptions:
http://www.sce.com/tehachapi