Project Summary
The original Arctic To Aurora undergrounding project area was bounded by Arctic Blvd to west, 19th Ave to the north, Aurora Dr to the east, and 22nd Ave to the south – and included 94 residential properties. You can read more about it in the current 5-year undergrounding plan by Chugach Electric Assocation (CEA).
In December 2022, CEA downsized the project to include only 20 of the original 94 properties.
This project was sparked in 2013 by several property owners, then elevated by MLP, and scheduled by MLP for construction in 2021. After CEA’s acquisition of MLP, AtoA was added to CEA’s 5-year undergrounding plan, though it was rescheduled to 2022.
General Project & Construction Timeline
In May 2022, CEA decided to reschedule construction of AtoA from 2022 to 2023. This decision was on the heels of a resolution from the North Star Community Council, which requested this rescheduling (due to the lack of public engagement, and primarily the lack communication about property owner deadlines, by CEA).
The 2023 construction schedule will probably not be known until late spring or early summer in 2023. For what it’s worth, the following is from handout provided by CEA at the March 17, 2022 public Q&A session, and sets some expectations.
March & April, 2022By October 31, 2022: secure land rightsApril & May, 2022By December 31, 2022: finalize design, based on land rights granted (easements received)- 2023: secure bids from contractors
- 2023: construction completed
Demographics of the Original Project Area (before CEA downsizing)
Based on Muni property data and CEA’s design (shared at the March FCC meeting):
Properties
94 properties in the project
- 148 residences (due to duplexes & fourplexes, per CEA)
- 3 vacant lots
Property Owners
89 property owners (5 owners each own two properties, so 94-5=89)
- 57 owner-occupied properties (61%)
- 37 not occupied by owners (39%)
Easements Needed
45 properties with easement requests
- 42 property owners w/ easement requests (3 owners each have 2 properties w/ easement requests, so 45-3=42)
- 14 property owners w/ easement requests who do NOT live at an AtoA property, and thus did not directly receive CEA’s May 2022 letter regarding construction rescheduling and the June 2022 meeting.