Politics & Government

Upgrade Substation in LN, SJC Leaders Say

A lawyer for neighboring San Juan Capistrano says SDG&E should expand Laguna Niguel's substation, not the one near the Mission.

Laguna Niguel is a much better spot for an upgraded electric substation, city leaders in San Juan Capistrano say.

San Diego Gas & Electric is proposing a . It has selected an existing substation in a San Juan Capistrano residential neighborhood about a mile from Mission San Juan Capistrano as the one to get the overhaul.

But leaders there are protesting the decision, and in legal papers filed with the California Public Utilities Commission, suggest either Laguna Niguel’s substation – which is in an industrial area along the railroad tracks – or in the as-yet not-built .

Find out what's happening in Laguna Niguel-Dana Pointwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“SDG&E's nearby Laguna Niguel substation is located in an industrial zone district more appropriate to a substation facility,” writes San Juan Capistrano’s lawyer.

Bypassing local control, the utility must seek permission from the PUC in two simultaneous applications: one, a declaration that the project is needed; and two, an environmental review.

Find out what's happening in Laguna Niguel-Dana Pointwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

San Juan Capistrano city leaders had indicated to SDG&E officials they wanted hearings on the project and when the utility applied for a so-called “Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity” without giving the city and others a chance to comment.

The city filed off a letter of protest to be heard on the matter, which an administrative law judge granted in early July.

It is in that letter of protest that San Juan Capistrano suggests that the Laguna Niguel substation would be a better fit for upgraded facilities rather than tearing down a 1918-era building close to its historic downtown.

The utility’s lawyer fired back in legal papers, saying that Laguna Niguel’s substation is less practical.

“The city of SJC’s suggestion that SDG&E use the Laguna Niguel Substation site as an alternative to the project fails to recognize that the Laguna Niguel facility is located over two miles to the west of the Capistrano substation and well outside of the transmission load center discussed in the [environmental impact report], and is surrounded by residential development, open space and recreational areas,” the utility’s lawyer writes. “The Capistrano substation is the substation closest to the transmission load center, at less than one mile.”

For more about SDG&E's Reliability Project, go .


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