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TEAM
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Glenbrook Underground, Inc.
Glenbrook Underground, Inc.
“Glenbrook Underground, Inc. a non-profit corporation” (or “GU”) (501c3 status pending) is a community wide organization whose mission is to reposition underground all utilities in Glenbrook--most importantly electrical. The success of GU’s mission hinges today on whether GHOA, which owns the community’s roads, will issue underground easements to enable undergrounding of all utilities, most specifically electrical.
A group of concerned property owners have joined together in partnership with NV Energy to immediately begin a process to underground all power lines.
A group of concerned property owners have joined together in partnership with NV Energy to immediately begin a process to underground all power lines.
Team
Team
Glenbrook Underground (GBU) was founded in 2020 and was incorporated in early 2021. It recruited from our community board members with expertise critical to its success. As of 10/25 the board consists of:
Meridee Moore - Investor and former public utility board member (Secretary GBU)
Garrett Sutton - Attorney (Vice President GBU)
Standish O’Grady - Engineer (President GBU)
Charlot Singleton - Fundraiser
Broader Team
Broader Team
A supporting cast is stewarding this project through planning and construction.
The Utility and the PUC
The Utility and the PUC
NV Energy has an obligation to harden the utility lines in its service territory to make them less vulnerable to fire risk. The utility can do this by replacing wooden poles with metal poles, cutting trees around the lines, etc. However, this obligation is not immediate (it could take well over a decade to occur), nor does it deliver the aesthetic, connectivity, reliability and safety advantages that undergrounding the lines will provide.
Even though NV Energy does not have an obligation to underground the lines, the company has agreed to participate financially in the undergrounding project and will work with the Glenbrook community to achieve the highest quality, timely outcome. We and NV Energy expect Glenbrook Underground to become a model for other communities in NV Energy’s service territory.
Glenbrook Underground hired counsel to represent us before the State of Nevada Public Utilities Commission (PUC), and the project was then introduced to the PUC by NV Energy.
Other Agencies and Permits
Other Agencies and Permits
The Glenbrook Underground project has been accepted and designated by the TRPA as a Lake Tahoe Environmental Improvement Program (EIP) -
www.trpa.gov/programs/environmental-improvement-program. EIP was launched in 1997 as a partnership of federal, state, and local agencies, private interests and the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California, created to protect and improve the extraordinary natural and recreational resources of the Lake Tahoe Basin.
Glenbrook Underground has the full support of Tahoe Douglas Fire Protection District Fire Chief Scott Lindgren. Consultations with Scott defined critical areas of priority in Glenbrook.
Glenbrook Underground’s civil engineers (see below) met with Douglas County in mid-May and the headline of their report was, “We had a very productive meeting with Douglas County yesterday with good news on all fronts! They are very supportive of the project.”
Engineering and Design
Engineering and Design
We are fortunate to have added a Glenbrook community member, Standish O’Grady, to our Board. Standish is a trained engineer, and he led the successful utility undergrounding project in Kirkwood. Standish has helped navigate the hiring of an experienced engineering firm, Lumos & Associates, as our civil engineers and likely project manager - www.lumosinc.com.
As the Civil Design lead, Lumos will provide project oversight and management as the representative of Glenbrook Underground. This role will include coordination of the design team’s activities, coordination with NV Energy and coordination with Glenbrook Underground. Lumos will be available to provide project updates, discuss project decisions needed, attend public meetings and address any other project related items during design.
Understanding the concerns of residents and developing a project that adequately addresses those concerns is key to the successful completion of the project. During the design process, Lumos will consult with Glenbrook constituents and regulatory agencies. The goal is to ensure the design ultimately presented for permitting is one that TRPA and Douglas County understand and support. Lumos will develop civil plans for submittal to both Douglas County and TRPA. These plans are being developed with technical specifications and design details that meet both Douglas County and TRPA requirements.
While the design engineer does not dictate means and methods to contractors, the plans and project technical specifications will require the contractor to prepare and present for approval certain documents, including a traffic control plan and storm water pollution prevention plan. Both of these will be necessary to ensure access to residents is maintained and water quality is protected during the trenching and line placement.
Lumos also has the in-house capability to provide construction management and inspection services. These services range from assistance with bidding and contractor selection, to daily construction inspection of the contractor’s work, to review of pay requests, to response to contractor questions during construction, to working through construction related issues with the contractor and/or residents, to reviewing and recommending change orders if necessary, and to providing updates to the community regarding the ongoing construction. The level of service Lumos can provide is high and will depend on the community’s and the project’s needs.
Join the team
Join the team
If you would like to help us inform the Glenbrook community about the benefits of undergrounding the electrical wiring, please Join Us!
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