The Bay Lake Project will connect Green Bay to Tilden Township and Menominee County to Escanaba
ISHPEMING -- Hundreds of miles of transmission lines will be making their way from Wisconsin to the U.P., costing American Transmission Company up to almost $900 million.
The goal of the Bay Lake Project is to connect Green Bay to Tilden Township with a 345-K volt transmission line. Menominee County and Escanaba will be connected by two 138-K volt lines.
"The project is needed for a combination of factors. Chief among them is electric system reliability. Customers will see a much more reliable source of electricity," said ATC spokesperson, Jackie Olson.
More reliable lines mean a stronger system that isn't as vulnerable to power outages. And if there is an outage, these transmission lines will be easier and possibly quicker to fix.
At the open house, land owners were able to see aerial images of their property and how the lines would affect it.
"Right now the way it looks, one of them would go right through the back of our house, maybe within 100 feet, so that would be a little bit concerning, not only for the appearance, but certainly for the value of our property, too," said homeowner Stu Bradley.
ATC is still in the preliminary stages of the project, informing residents of what they can expect. They'll be back in the U.P. in October for more open houses.
The company doesn't plan to start construction on the transmission lines until 2015.
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