Neighbors got the tower dropped from a south Anchorage substation rebuild

After a two-year fight with neighbors, Chugach Electric has dropped the 65-foot communication tower from its planned rebuild of a south Anchorage substation, and will lease fiber instead.

The rebuild of the 50-year-old Campbell Lake Substation, which serves about 4,600 properties, returns to the Anchorage Planning and Zoning Commission on Aug. 10. The commission approved the project and the tower in 2023, but the Municipal Board of Adjustment sent it back after a neighborhood association appealed, finding the community meeting had been inadequate. Chugach restarted this year with a new consultant and a working group of Bayshore/Klatt residents, and agreed to abandon the tower.

What's left is smaller. Chugach still wants two variances, a slightly taller security fence and reduced landscaping along three property lines. Staff recommends approval, and no agency objected.

One neighbor still does. Nathan Stephens questioned the noise study and asked that the transformers be moved farther from his house. The study found the rebuild would raise noise at the nearest home by less than a tenth of a decibel, and the project's engineer said moving the equipment would compromise maintenance access.

The hearing is 6:30 p.m. Aug. 10 at Loussac Library. Construction is targeted for 2028.