NextEra Energy will host a public hearing in Iola next week regarding a proposed transmission line that will cut through a large swath of Allen County.
The hearing will take place on Wednesday at Iola High School. An open house starts at 3 p.m. to give attendees a chance to review detailed maps of the proposed route and ask questions.
Starting at 6 p.m., a general forum will allow the public to ask questions and make formal statements.
A similar event will take place at the same time on Thursday at the Girard Public Library. That event also will allow virtual participation through Zoom.
Both hearings will be broadcast live on YouTube.
NextEra Energy Transmission Southwest LLC plans to construct a 94-mile, 345 kV transmission line to connect the Wolf Creek Substation in Coffey County to the Blackberry Substation in Jasper County, Mo.
The line will pass through Coffey, Anderson, Allen, Bourbon and Crawford counties in Kansas and is expected to affect about 220 landowners. The proposed route cuts diagonally through Allen County, with 58 local landowners affected.
Some property owners have expressed concern about the proximity of poles and lines to structures such as homes and barns for livestock. Most of the poles will be situated 500 feet or more from structures, but in a few cases, they’ll be 200 feet away.
The debate over the transmission line has been contentious at times, with property owners in affected counties organizing meetings to discuss their options. Some have asked their respective county commissions to intervene, but counties have limited control because the project has been deemed a necessity at both the federal and state levels.
State law requires the Kansas Corporation Commission (KCC) to conduct public hearings on the matter.
The project is expected to save customers about $24 million in the first year, and another $377 million over the next 40 years by reducing congestion on electric power lines.
Building the transmission lines also will benefit the local economy, as NextEra said they typically use material, vendors and labor from the local area as much as possible.
That economic benefit is expected to be about $28 million in Kansas and $4 million in Missouri over the next 40 years.
Annual land payments to property owners are expected to total around $7.9 million.
