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. . . ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES FEBRUARY 11, 2002 7 Councilmember Larson asked if they could not do othcr things to allow a double circuit. He stated they could have put up a bigger pole to be more resistant to damagc. Mr. Wertish responded this was the most practical way to get the job done. Councilmembcr Larson stated it does not address thc needs of this community. He noted that property will remain park land. Mr. Wertish rcsponded he understood. Mayor Probst statcd he did not think Mr. Wertish did understand. Mr. Wertish responded they worked with the County. Mayor Probst statcd Mr. Wertish should nol take his comments personaJ1y, but he thinks it is unconscionable that the City was not contacted. He noted it was unconscionable that other options were not explored. He added they should have considered additional services on the west side rather than having lines on both sides ofthat property. He stated he is mystified why thc Wispark devclopment is not part of this discussion when the additional load is caused by it. Mr. Weltish responded Xcel is not charging anybody. He stated Arden Hills is reqLlesting the underground Jines. Councilmember Grant stated this line servcs Wisp ark. He noted it is a new developmcnt and has no charge for underground servicc. He added that County Road F the lines are Imdcrground at no charge. Hc stated this section is overhead with no other options considered. He noted it is fmstrating to Council, since the rate payers arc left to pay the bill. Hc added Xcel needs the capacity and the redundancy. He statcd Xcel should have approached Arden HiJ1s just as the County indicates in its permit process. Mr. Wertish responded they were not told of this new rcquiremcnt whcn they received their pem1its. He stated some things fell through the cracks. He noted he is sorry the City feels this linc would just benefit Wispark. He added it benefits Arden HiJ1s too since the system is integrated. Councilmember Grant stated that thc best practice for the future is to notify the city involved as the normal course of action. Councilmember Aplikowski asked how big an issue this $450,000 cost is. She statcd they did not notice these lines going up until some one call the city. She questioned how important it is for the city to have that strctch of line underground. Mayor Probst stated the PUC regulations are not in place. Hc noted there were other ways of solving this problcm. He added there are many ways to protect those polcs on the other sidc of the street. He stated they havc not noticed the lines because Xcel has been building north to south. Hc notcd thcrc are not a lot ofresidents there to notice. Mr. Lynch stated that by ordinance the city policy is that the lines should go under ground. Councilmember Aplikowski slated ifthc City requests it have to pay for it. She notcd money is the bottom line. Shc added she knows the pennit policy was not followed. She added they are going to spend money either way. She stated the issue is what is thc best use of the rcsidents money.