Property owners in a Del Mar, Calif., utility undergrounding district now face firm deadlines to prepare for underground electric service, a key step in the city's long-running effort to remove overhead utility infrastructure from local streets.
Here's what to know
By approving deadlines on Sept. 8 for properties in utility undergrounding district X1A, the Del Mar City Council gave the city a way to enforce compliance if a property is not ready once underground service is available, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported.
Properties in Work Zone 3 north of Amphitheatre Drive — including the Crest Road stretch between Via Alta and Amphitheatre Drive, plus parts of Klish Way and Kalamath Drive — were required to be ready by Sept. 21.
For Work Zone 3 south of Amphitheatre Drive, the readiness date is Nov. 16. That group includes properties on Crest Road from Amphitheatre Drive to the San Diego city line, along with properties on Hoska Drive.
More background
According to the council agenda report, the city needed a formal resolution to set the date when affected properties must be prepared for underground service.
Utility companies, not the city, will determine the final timing for the project's next big phase — pole removal — because they control construction scheduling for cable installation, service cutovers, and the removal of overhead wires and poles.
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The current expectation is that pole removals will happen in spring 2027.
What's being done?
The city set official readiness deadlines for specific property groups.
Utility companies remain responsible for the technical construction work, including "installation of cables and connections, service cutovers, and overhead wire and pole removals," per the council agenda report.
City officials have tentatively scheduled a broader update on the undergrounding project for October.
"A Council resolution is required to formally establish the date by which properties within the utility undergrounding district must be ready to receive underground service," the council agenda report read, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune. "The resolution is needed in the event a property does not comply and requires enforcement."
Where can I learn more?
These stories discuss other utility and infrastructure issues affecting homeowners and communities.
• After house fires, California homeowners say smoke damage claims were denied by their insurers.
• In Santa Ana, Calif., drivers now have a community-style EV charging center built for longer stops.
• In Seattle's South Park, scientists warned sewer flooding could uproot neighborhoods as groundwater rises.
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