NORTHAMPTON — A dozen so-called telemetry cabinets will soon be installed at various locations throughout the city that will enable energy provider Eversource to monitor and transmit data from natural gas pipes underground.
The City Council recently approved installation of nine of 12 cabinets, which stand 6 feet tall and will be installed on public ways along the street, in a special meeting. The location for the remaining three will be worked out between the utility and nearby property owners before being approved by the council.
The cabinets are typically painted green and protected by yellow poles. They will be installed near regulator stations already in place, and are tasked with monitoring and regulating natural gas pressure and have the capability of shutting the gas off if necessary. Eversource also received permission from the council to install a regulator station at Prospect Street and Trumbull Road.
The matter was brought to the council after Eversource began to install one of the telemetry cabinets at a location on North Maple Street in Florence. Eversource had the necessary permitting for the project, but did not realize that unlike its underground installations, above-ground projects must be approved by the council, a process known as “grant of location.”
“We reviewed the documentation they submitted, and from that documentation it was not apparent that the work was going to result in above-ground installation,” Director of Public Works Donna LaScaleia said. “When it became apparent that this work was transitioning from below-ground to above-ground, it was at that time that we realized we needed to stop everything and actually go through a formal grant of location process.”
JoJo Howlett, a resident with abutting property at the North Maple Street location, attended the special meeting, saying she had intended to build a driveway near the proposed cabinet and expressed discontent with Eversource having started work there prematurely.
“The permits weren’t honest and [Eversource] didn’t put the structure in the permit,” Howlett said. “That was an abuse of power.”
Bryan Meccariello, an Eversource representative who attended the special meeting, said that the company was amenable to moving it to a new location, so long as it did not interfere with any other nearby structures.
“We’d have to work with engineering and the planning group to determine where exactly we’d have to move,” he said. “It’s a pretty tight area, so we just can’t move it and be in the way of something else.”
Ultimately, the North Maple Street location was approved by the council, on the condition that Eversource and Howlett come to an agreement regarding the location.
Three other locations however will have to come back to council to be approved: at Barrett, Hinckley and Chestnut streets.
Corrie Tamburro, whose property abuts the proposed Chestnut Street location, said she was concerned about a telemetry cabinet located near her property.
“We don’t have much land anyways and our house is small,” she said. “Quite frankly, this is going to lower the retail value of our real estate if we ever do want to sell the property.”
Laura Reinhard, whose property abuts the proposed Hinckley Street location, said that she worried a telemetry cabinet might impair her line of sight while driving out of her property.
“[The cabinet] is to my left, and that’s the most dangerous part as I leave,” she said. “I want to ensure that I’m not losing a critical sight of oncoming traffic.”
The three locations not approved will be discussed between Eversource, property owners and councilors from in the location’s respective wards, before returning to be approved during the next regular council meeting, scheduled to take place on July 6.
Alexander MacDougall can be reached at amacdougall@gazettenet.com.
