GILROY
– The little hope there was for putting the city’s unsightly
utility poles and telephone wires underground got dashed this
week.
GILROY – The little hope there was for putting the city’s unsightly utility poles and telephone wires underground got dashed this week.
City Council has rejected the idea of making property owners pay fees for the costly work. And money from Pacific Gas & Electric isn’t enough to fund even a portion of the many potential projects around town.
The decision raises questions about the city’s commitment to the revitalization of downtown and older parts of town. However, the mayor says the decision may make it easier for property owners to spend money on their own beautification and expansion projects, since they won’t be charged what would sometimes amount to a cost prohibitive fee.
“You got to be realistic about it,” Mayor Al Pinheiro said. “People are not going to do something if it doesn’t pencil out.”
It costs $250-per-foot to put utilities underground and there are miles of road in Gilroy that have utility poles and wires. After more than 10 years of collecting fees, Gilroy has less than $200,000 for undergrounding.
City Administrator Jay Baksa said the money will be used for two undergrounding projects in Gilroy. One project is along Santa Teresa Boulevard, the other is on Monterey and Fifth streets, Baksa said.
“The end result is that utilities remain above ground, but we’re still undergrounding at some key spots,” Baksa said. “Once the existing funds are spent, (undergrounding) dies.”
The city considered reverting back to a system that made property owners sign an agreement promising they would take part in an assessment district if at some point in the future an entire block or neighborhood were ready to have utilities put underground. However, Baksa said that system never worked well.
“It wasn’t working real well because things develop at different times,” Baksa said.
Council’s decision not to back the ordinance will not affect new developments. Those projects must put all wires under ground from the get go.
Pinheiro said that is good news for high-profile revitalization projects like the new arts and culture center planned for Monterey and Seventh streets.
When construction on the center begins in 2008, undergrounding the utilities there will take place.
