Meeker County Board Meeting

The Meeker County Board of Commissioners had a visit from Great River Energy Project Manager Mark Strohfus regarding a115-kV transmission line project. A 70-mile transmission line is proposed to go from Willmar to Litchfield and Hutchinson.

Great River Energy, Southern Minnesota Municipal Power Agency, the City of Litchfield and Hutchinson Municipal Utilities are hoping to build the line. A certificate of need and route permit will be required from the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission before the line can be built – a process that is expected to last a year – with approval expected by the end of 2027. The engineering process – including landowner coordination and easements – would last from 2027-to-2029, with construction expected from 2029-to-2031.

Existing lines were built in the late 1940s and early 1950s and need to be replaced. About 50 miles of the project will replace existing line and about 20 miles will be new line and will require new rights-of-way. The above-ground line will go from south of Willmar near Highway 71 then east through Winfield, Fahlun and Lake Elizabeth Townships in Kandiyohi County, then through Danielson Township and part of Greenleaf Township in Meeker County. The line will then split – with lines heading down to Hutchinson, and lines heading north to Litchfield and then up to Forest City Township. The line would be supported with steel poles – 70-to-90 feet high, embedded in concrete piers, with spans of 350-to-500 feet.