Haystack/Hilltop Power Line Extension

In October 1996, GVEA's Board of Directors committed $631,000 to extend power to the Haystack and Hilltop areas on the Elliot Highway on the condition that the State appropriate $946,500 to cover the balance of the project costs. Our proposal to the legislature included a $2,400 nonrefundable customer contribution for each service connected to the main line. In June 1998, GVEA notified residents and property owners in the Haystack and Hilltop areas that the legislative budget included a line item grant for the necessary funds. Senator Bert Sharp located a funding source and placed this project in the budget, Representative Gene Therriault protected the funds in the House Finance committee, Senate President Miller and our entire Interior delegation supported the project and Governor Knowles signed the bill on June 30, 1998.

In July 1998, GVEA's Construction Services Manager Greg Wyman and other GVEA employees held an informational meeting for Haystack and Hilltop residents and property owners. Route selection, time frames, application process and fees were discussed. By mid-August, the first three miles along the Elliot Highway had been surveyed. All of the clearing was done by mid-December and the lights were on for Christmas for the Hilltop Truckstop and five residences. Construction on the remaining twelve miles continued into 1999.

The line extension is constructed as a three-phase power line to the Hilltop Truckstop. A single-phase line extends beyond Hilltop, through Vault Subdivision and Wanda's Acres Subdivision, and along the Elliott Highway, past the Chatanika River, to the "11-Mile Store" at Haystack Drive. The single-phase line continues from the "11-Mile Store" to Cogan's Homestead along Haystack Drive, to the top of Haystack Mountain, then along the entire length of Leuthold Drive.

On July 2, 1999, construction on this 25-mile project was completed. Members paid $2,400 to connect to the main line extension and additional spans cost $2,700 each. By the end of 2001, 80 residences and businesses in that area were connected to GVEA's system.

If you have any questions, feel free to call us at 452-1151.