While most of Banks had originally been slated to avoid an intentional power shutoff, residents in the city are without power anyway following what PGE described as a downed tree on a power line. A small brush fire on the western edge of town was extinguished with the quick action of neighbors, Banks Fire said.
utilities
PGE opens community resource center at Jim’s Market in Banks for charging, ice, info
As power is shut off for rural communities just outside Banks over wildfire concerns, Portland General Electric has established a community resource center at Jim’s Market in Banks to provide phone charging, ice, and information about the Public Safety Power Shutoffs beginning Friday. The center (12350 NW Main St) is[Read More…]
PGE will shut power off in rural western Washington County beginning Friday morning
Power will be shut off in an effort to reduce wildfire risk in ten areas across PGE’s service territory starting Friday. In Gales Creek, power will be cut sometime between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. Friday, and may be restored starting Saturday evening.
Banks City Council grants Ziply Fiber 10-year franchise
The Banks City Council unanimously approved a new ordinance granting Ziply Fiber a 10-year, non-exclusive franchise agreement to operate their fiber network in the city.
Banks City Council eyes burying
Main Street power lines
The city of Banks plans to conduct a feasibility study to provide the Banks City Council with a cost analysis for removing utility poles on Main Street and submerging those power lines underground.
Past-due PGE customers may qualify for matching grant to pay bills
Power lines near Forest Grove. File photo: Chas Hundley Portland General Electric sent an email to some customers on March 10 announcing it will match customer’s payments on past-due balances between April 1 and June 30. “It’s been a tough year, but you’re not alone in dealing with your past-due[Read More…]
West Oregon Electric Co-op prices increasing Jan. 1
West Oregon Electric Co-op offices in Vernonia. Photo: Chas Hundley Beginning in the new year, members of the West Oregon Electric Co-op (WOEC) will see an increase in their electricity bills. In a letter to the WOEC membership, the co-op noted that, after a decision by the co-op’s board of[Read More…]
Is fiber coming to rural western Washington County? Perhaps, says Ziply
Ziply’s current broadband network in northwest Oregon. Blue is broadband, green is fiber. Photo courtesy Ziply website The rural portions of Washington County have always struggled to gain access to high speed internet, with some regions solely relying on satellite or microwave options, while others are on copper lines now[Read More…]
Goodbye Frontier, hello Ziply
A Frontier Communications truck in downtown Gales Creek. Photo: Chas Hundley OREGON – Frontier Communications officially completed the sale of their operations in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Montana on Friday to the company now known as Ziply Fiber. The deal closed at $1.35 billion, according to Ziply, which is headquartered[Read More…]
Utility companies could charge Oregon ratepayers for electric vehicle infrastructure improvements under proposed HB 4066
The Oregon Capitol building in Salem. Photo: Chas Hundley SALEM – House Bill 4066, a prospective law that passed on a 7-2 vote that would allow the state Public Utility Commission (PUC) to provide electric companies with the ability to recover costs for electric vehicle investments from ratepayers, passed the[Read More…]
