ROYAL CITY — Wednesday evening, the Grant County PUD held the second of two public hearings on the proposed transmission line going to the new Red Rock Substation, to be located at the Port of Royal Slope.

Matt Grylicki, of the Denver office of Stanley Consultants, said that for the past year the company has been studying every possible route the new transmission line could possibly take. They identified 84 different possible routes. They then rated each possible route based on 18 different criteria, such as environmental, economic and social impacts, proximity to houses and what existing corridors may be already in existence. The routes are analyzed and given a score. The routes with the lowest average score are the routes then put forward for public comment.

“We do our due diligence,” Grylicki said. “We apply statistical analysis and look at everything on the routes.”

The public hearings were the final step in the process before selecting a final route.

“These meetings are important,” Grylicki said. “We got good feedback last week.”

Once the final route has been chosen, engineers will determine such things as the location of each pole, the length of span between poles, what type of poles will be used and how deep they will need to go into the ground.

“The lines are designed and engineered for public safety,” Grylicki said.

Grylicki said that while a transmission line may look very simple, they all get designed and engineered.

Currently, Royal City and the Port of Royal Slope are being powered through the Royal City Substation. But that substation is nearing peak capacity. The new Red Rock Substation that the proposed transmission lines will be powering will initially have one 41-megavolt-ampere transformer, according to Randy Kono, a Grant County PUD electrical engineer. As more power is needed in the years to come, a second transformer of the same size can be added. The new substation will allow for future growth in the Royal City area.

“I think it is a really great deal,” said Port of Royal Slope Commissioner Frank Mianecki. “We’ve needed the substation for a long time. Thanks to the PUD for listening to us. None of this would have happened without their cooperation.”

Public comment on the proposed line will be open through Feb. 12. Anyone wishing to comment can email publicaffairs@gcpud.org. A final proposal on which route the line will take will be presented to the PUD commissioners in the next couple of months. Construction on the project is expected to be done in March 2022.

Rachal Pinkerton may be reached via email at rpinkerton@columbiabasinherald.com.