Though Wrangell’s grid runs on hydroelectric power, the borough has five diesel generators on standby to provide the community with supplemental electricity in case of a blackout. Four of these five generators are housed in a deteriorating building that was constructed prior to 1948.
At its May 23 meeting, the borough assembly approved over half-a-million dollars for engineers to put together plans to demolish and replace a concrete-built warehouse attached to the power plant, and replace the roof structure and a wall of the steel building that houses the generators.
Assembly Member Jim DeBord was the only opposing vote, citing concerns about the large price tag.
Juneau-based firm PND Engineers has agreed to take on the project for $633,190. The money will come from the light and power enterprise fund, which sustains itself on customers’ electric bills.
The same firm conducted the building’s structural assessment in 2009 and an additional review in 2019. PND estimates that the full design may take over a year to complete.
The building’s walls are unsound and it “poses life safety and security concerns” for staff, according to a statement submitted by Capital Facilities Director Amber Al-Haddad. “The original concrete structure of the diesel generation power plant is structurally unsound and dictates that the remainder of the building be rehabilitated or replaced to eliminate the risk of building failure and the risk to the community’s back-up power source and assets.”
“The reason the wall is deteriorating is because we believe they used beach sand for the concrete,” Mayor Patty Gilbert informed the assembly.
DeBord was hesitant to spend over $600,000 on a building design and questioned whether continuing to use diesel generators was financially sustainable. None of the appropriated money will go toward construction. The borough anticipates funding the actual rebuild project with grants.
“At some point in time, maintaining these diesel generators becomes cost prohibitive to build a $20 million building,” he said. “I just don’t see how, with everything else that we have pending, how it’s economically viable to continue this. We have to figure out some other solution.”
Borough Manager Jeff Good explained that the complexity of the design project had driven the cost. “It’s how do you get rid of the existing structure safely while still supporting the current structure,” he said. “I don’t know what the cost of that building would be, but maybe there’s a way we can try to trim back that cost on how we do it, the kind of materials we use, because the real use for that is going to really be supporting the back of our existing building.”
Once the design process is underway, Good said, the borough will explore its options for the plant, which could include stabilizing the existing structure, repurposing another building to house the generators or constructing something new.
“I don’t think any options are off the table,” he said in an interview. “The only thing we’re looking at right now is just the design work … so I think as we get into design, we’ll definitely look at all the options that are out there and what the best value and the best cost is for the city and borough of Wrangell.”
Reader Comments(0)