Roanoke Needs Your Help

By: Hank Bostwick
Published On: 4/6/2008 11:05:27 AM

Appalachian Power (AEP) has a project planned that will affect the quality of life for thousands of people on the boundary between Roanoke City and Roanoke County.  Raising Kaine reaches thousands of bloggers a day across the Commonwealth.  If we could siphon off a fraction of that traffic for this important cause, we may be able to make a difference.

Time is of the essense.

The Public Comment period ends around the beginning of May.

People in the Roanoke Valley need your help to stop AEP's efforts to exacerbate the problems of irresponsible sprawl and the devastation of more green space in our beautiful City and County. Charlotte Moore, a member of the Roanoke County Board of Supervisors, realtor, and business owner, is leading a movement to make AEP reconsider its current plans for the so-called Sunscape Project. Mrs. Moore is a woman to watch in Virginia politics.  Progressive, passionate and principled, Charlotte Moore, a Roanoke County Democrat, has a bright future in leadership.  Right now, though, she needs your help to make AEP listen to her concerns.

Tom McKinnon of the Star City Harbinger chronicles Charlotte's frustration with AEP:

"I am not going to give up on this", says Charlotte over lunch. "If they proceed with the above-ground plan, aesthetically it will be a disaster." Go right now, up to Carlos' Restaurant and look at the view. Now imagine ugly, 100 foot tall power transmission line towers strung across that landscape. Ok, is anyone saying "Yay for 100? powerline transmission towers?" I didn't think so.

"Since AEP will not voluntarily put the power cables underground, the only real hope is to appeal to the Virginia State Corporation Commission, or SCC, the regulatory agency responsible for making the call", Charlotte continued. Although AEP pretends that they want feedback regarding this project, when some of Charlotte's constituents made clear their intentions to petition the SCC to have the power lines put underground, the response was essentially "Yeah, good luck with that".

AEP thinks that the people who live in the apartments surrounding the proposed project are renters and, therefore, have no stake or voice in the decision to approve the Sunscape Project.  They think renters don't care.  We don't agree.

HELP US HELP CHARLOTTE MOORE. READ THE STORY. SIGN THE PETITION.

Comments



"Sunscape Project" (Eric - 4/6/2008 11:39:56 AM)
Aren't these PR guys great **sarcasm** ???  

If I didn't know what it was, I'd think it was some sort of solar energy effort by a forward looking utility.  Dominion is calling the dirty Wise County coal plant a Hybrid Energy Center - hell, why not call it the "Super Green Save the Earth Center"?  It's all phony marketing.

Jeez.



Yeah, Orwellian even. Heavens to Murgatroid! (Hank Bostwick - 4/6/2008 12:30:45 PM)
Thank you, Lowell and the readers of Raising Kaine!

I'll keep the diary updated with our progress and the results of the petition.

Exit stage left.



what's the process? (jsrutstein - 4/6/2008 1:22:36 PM)
I'm not clear on the process here.  The SCC "makes the call," but AEP will stop considering feedback sometime in early May?  I hope the process consists of AEP needing state approval with AEP making its case (most likely based on the relative cheapness of an aboveground solution allowing it to keep utility rates lower than they otherwise would be), and the public being allowed to make its case.  Does anyone know how this is supposed to work?


Excellent question, Brother J. (Hank Bostwick - 4/6/2008 9:44:34 PM)
AEP is being very tight-lipped about the "process."  Our sources say that there has already been preliminary approval of the plan (by whom and to what extent remains an open question) and that this public comment period is actually a farce.

This happened under the radar until Charlotte Moore got a hold of the information.

I promise to keep you informed, J, when we learn more.  Thanks for your interest.

Spread the word.