In a show of solidarity, residents in white shirts packed the Frisco City Council meeting and overflowed into the Frisco Municipal Center lobby Tuesday night in opposition to Brazos Electric's proposed transmission line routes through west Frisco.
The 300-seat council chamber was filled to capacity, and another 150 people watched the discussion on a television in the lobby.
Nearly 20 residents, mostly spokesmen and women representing individual homeowner associations, voiced opposition to the proposed lines and asked the city to continue looking into the issue, including alternate routes, the necessity of the project and the possibility of running lines underground.
Frisco City Council members unanimously passed a resolution opposing the proposed routes.
Brazos Electric has shown two proposed routes - one that would travel along Main Street, and the other Stonebrook Parkway. Both would affect thousands of current Frisco residents and many more thousands after the city is built out, according to city officials.
The chosen route is expected to be 2 to 4 miles in length, extending from a new 5-acre substation east of Lake Lewisville to an existing tap point just west of the Dallas North Tollway.
Brazos Electric is the power supply company for CoServ Electric, and city staff members said CoServ has identified a potential electrical capacity shortfall in the next 10 years for the area west of the DNT, north of The Colony, south of U.S. 380 and east of Lake Lewisville.
Mike Grim, the spokesman for the newly formed West Frisco Homeowner's Coalition questioned that need, and said more research needs to be done before a decision is made.
Other opposition ranged from health concerns, to decreasing property values and traffic concerns.
Ben Brezina, assistant to the city manager who is heading up the issue, said the city's best option is to find alternative routes and work with Brazos Electric before the company makes its proposal to the Public Utilities Commission of Texas—the body that will make the decision on if the power lines are needed and whether they can be constructed on proposed routes.
The city has come up with one alternate route north of the city limits already, and is looking into others. Brezina said Brazos has committed to working with the city on finding an alternate route before looking for approval from the PUCT.
Council members thanked residents for voicing their support and agreed more exploration into the issue is needed.
"We have to come up with other alternatives," councilman Bob Allen said. "We are committed to fighting for it as you [residents] would like us to do."
Councilman John Keating said the city will be working on the issues diligently and will seek "good, quality, consistent answers."
"What we are doing here tonight will reverberate across the state," Keating said.
Councilman Tim Nelson said Brazos Electric's proposed lines are putting the "cart before the horse."
"We need to make sure the route we go through is the best route for Frisco, and that will take time. There are smarter ways of doing this than what's on the table tonight," he added.
Councilman Will Sowell said just because Brazos Electric can try to push the lines through doesn't mean they should. He said Stonebrook is not "by any means" a suitable route, and Main Street was named such for a reason—and that reason is not to run power lines down the middle of it.
"I implore you all to stay involved," he said, adding that resident involvement will provide the council and staff the leverage to fight for better line routes.
Councilman Jeff Cheney said it's critical the city works with Brazos Electric to put options on the table.
"This is a process we are going through to make sure our residents are being protected," Cheney said.