History

The city of Bountiful, Utah is located ten miles north of Salt Lake City. The citizens of Bountiful first received electric services from a small, local power company called “Bountiful Light and Power Company”, which was organized on July 3, 1907. The company was originally capitalized for $10,000. Most of the principal stockholders lived in Bountiful, or the immediate area. The 2005 book value of Bountiful City Light & Power was about $40,000,000.

A distribution system was constructed which served between 200-300 customers. At that time, the officers of the Company conducted a study and determined that it was cheaper to purchase power wholesale than to build a power plant. Accordingly, a contract was signed with the Utah Light and Railway Company, later known as the Utah Light and Traction Company, and presently as Utah Power and Light (UP&L).

The old timers say that the Company failed to keep its distribution system in good repair, and was subject to extensive public criticism, as well as pressure from the Public Service Commission to improve its performance. They also recall that electric service from the Company continued to deteriorate to a level that prompted its customers to petition the city to intervene.

Dr. J.C. Stocks, who was mayor, headed up a citizen’s task force to investigate the complaint in about 1934. The investigation eventually lead to the City’s decision to own and operate its electric system, and better serve its citizens.

Then, as is the case now, the sources of power and energy were the most challenging aspects of system operation. They realized that cost and reliability are the two most important factors. Meanwhile, the City had negotiated a price for the Company’s distribution system, and obtained an option to assure the purchase while the City arranged for financing. Revenue bonds in the amount of $106,000 were issued by the City for construction of the power plant and the purchase of the distribution system. The bonds were paid back through electric revenues.

On May 22, 1935, Bountiful’s own power plant produced its first electricity. During that same year, the City Council approved three citizen appointments to serve on the first Bountiful City Light and Power Commission. They were Mayor J.C. Stocks, and Council representatives John S. Ledingham and Alfred G. Brown. One of the first things they did as a Commission was investigate the condition of the power plant. It was then recommended to employ an experienced person as manager. Horton Fackrell served as the first manager for six months. The Commission next appointed Samuel W. Hutchings, who served from 1935 to 1938. Since that time, five men have served as manager: John Ledingham, Robert Nicol, Vaun Bethers, W. Berry Hutchings (twice), and Clifford C. Michaelis.

Berry Hutchings served as manager from 1950 to 1976. Vaun Bethers, the Department Engineer, was appointed manager from 1976 to 1980. During that time Mr. Hutchings served in a new position as Power Resource Manager. His efforts helped Bountiful obtain licenses for the construction of hydro-electric plants on Echo Dam, East Canyon Dam, Moon Lake and Lost Creek Dam. He was also instrumental in Bountiful being awarded the license to take over the Weber River hydro plant in Weber Canyon. However, after nearly ten years of court litigation, Congress decided to re-license that plant to the previous operator.

Mr. Bethers left in 1980 and Mr. Hutchings was reappointed manager. He served in that position until his retirement in 1983. At that time the City promoted from within the department again, selecting Clifford C. Michaelis as manager. The job title was then changed to Director.

The governing board for the Power Department is a Power Commission which is appointed by the mayor and City Council. They work with the staff in making the major decisions for the department and send their recommendations to the City Council. The present members of the Power Commission are: Lowell Leishman (Chairman), David Irvine, Fred Moss (City Council Representative), Richard Foster, Ralph Mabey, John Cushing, and Jed Pitcher.

The Power Department offices were first located in a home at about 180 West 300 South, just east of the present power plant. After the discontinuation of the Bamberger Railroad in 1952, the large warehouse building at 198 South 200 West was owned by Muir-Roberts Produce Company. It was acquired by Bountiful Power in 1964. The building has a historical marker near the front door denoting the railroad connection. In 1978, a major addition was made to the office building, which included ten truck bays and warehouse space on two levels. In 1998, major remodeling of the office spaces was done. In 1988 a six bay garage was constructed to the west of the main building to house more equipment and material.

The City-owned power plant was the first power resource, which at that time consisted of three engines; two six-cylinder Buckeyes (approximately 110 kilowatts), and one three-cylinder Buckeye (approximately 60 kilowatts). As the demand for more power rapidly increased, additional generating units were installed. From 1955 to 1959, four Superior engines were added and only the oldest Buckeye engine was left in place. In 1963 another addition was made to the plant and a Cooper 2,500 kilowatt engine was added. In 1986 Bountiful built a major addition to the plant to allow space for a 7,000 kilowatt Enterprise engine. In 1995, the dispatch center was completely remodeled. In 2001 a gas turbine was installed. At the present time, the power plant houses eight separate turbo-charged generating units, and a gas turbine with an installed capacity of 19,000 kilowatts (if all nine were running at the same time). Today Bountiful City Light and Power serves a population of about 43,000 and has over16,000 metered customer accounts.

In the late 1940's, the cost of diesel fuel to operate the generating units increased to the level where it was as economical to purchase power from UP&L as to generate it; therefore, in 1948, an interconnection with the UP&L system was made. Power was purchased from them for several years to supply the needs of the system.

In 1953 Mountain Fuel Supply Company released an abundant supply of natural gas at a cost substantially below the cost of purchasing power from UP&L. From 1954 to 1957, pressure from several groups tried to force the City out of the power business. The manager, Berry Hutchings, and the Power Commission convinced the City Fathers that natural gas, instead of diesel fuel to operate the power plant generators would save the city millions of dollars. In 1957 another electric revenue bond for $275,000 was issued to convert the existing four generators to dual fuel (natural gas and diesel), upgrade the power plant, and purchase four Superior engines.

The main use of the power plant today is for providing peaking power to meet the needs of the city during high use periods, and for emergency power purposes. It is idle when less expensive power can be purchased to meet the needs of the City. However, in the winter months one engine is put on-line so that the waste heat from it can be sent through pipes to heat the plant buildings and the main office and warehouse building across the street. Bountiful also sells some of its generated power to other utilities. The Power Plant presently supplies less than 10% of the City’s power needs.

In 1962 Bountiful was able to successfully contract with the Federal Government to purchase hydroelectric power from the Colorado River Storage Project (CRSP). It was an escalating contract which allowed for more power to be purchased each year to keep up with increased city growth. At that time, that form of power was more expensive than many other sources; but over the years it has become the “low-cost”supply. The City’s present contract is for 43,265 kilowatts per month during the winter season, and 27,148 kilowatts per month during the summer season. The first CRSP power generated at Flaming Gorge Dam was delivered in 1963. Another part of CRSP is power generated by the eight generators at Glen Canyon Dam, which Bountiful started receiving in 1964. Today the Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) is the marketing arm of the Federal Government that was established to allocate those power sales. The City receives about 60 percent of its power from WAPA.

Bountiful City is also a participant in two coal-fired power plants: the Intermountain Power Project (IPP), near Delta, Utah, and the San Juan Project in New Mexico. A portion of the City’s IPP power allocation is presently being sold to six California cities (Anaheim, Burbank, Glendale, Los Angeles, Pasadena and Riverside). Bountiful uses IPP power to cover about 14 percent of its present load. The San Juan plant currently provides about 12 percent of the City’s power requirements.

Over the years, Bountiful has received authorization from the federal government to build and operate hydroelectric facilities at various sites around Utah from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Bountiful has captured the energy from those renewable resources to provide electricity to its citizens at the most reasonable costs available, while preserving the integrity of the Utah environment. The City was awarded the licenses to operate facilities at Echo Dam and Pineview Dam. The Echo hydro plant was built in 1986. It consists of three vertical turbines, which can generate a total of 4,500 kilowatts. Bountiful built its own 26 mile transmission line to bring that power over the mountains to the city. The Pineview hydro plant was built in 1991. It has one vertical turbine that generates 1,800 kilowatts. Several other projects are currently being studied for their feasibility.

In 1992 Bountiful Power purchased the former Colonial Lumber property on the corner of 200 South and 200 West. The main building is being used for material storage. Part of the land was used to build a new gas turbine in 2001. That unit provides over 4,000 kilowatts.

Bountiful is a member of the Utah Associated Municipal Power System (UAMPS). UAMPS serves 35 cities and 11 other agencies in Utah, Idaho, New Mexico and Arizona. It serves as the power broker and helps make low-cost power available to its members. About 20 percent of Bountiful’s power is purchased through UAMPS.

Over the years the Department has had a variety of experiences with bad weather and the challenges of mother nature. East winds and snow had caused the biggest problems until the floods of 1983. In May 1983 the City endured so called “100 year floods”, which came roaring down the canyons. A wall of water smashed into the City’s Northeast substation on 250 North and caused massive destruction. Rebuilding the substation on higher ground at the same location took a full year. Over the years, the infamous east winds have caused many problems, but Bountiful’s power crews worked through them all. Another notable event took place in the fall of 1990, when the old wooden cooling tower at the Power Plant caught fire (as it was being prepared for demolition) and burned to the ground.

Although the main purpose of the Power Department has been to provide an inexpensive source of power to city residents, much of the margin from the sale of electricity is transferred to the City’s General Fund and Capitol Improvement Fund. Those funds aid in keeping the City’s tax mill levy at a low level. Each year money is transferred to those funds, which helps the City keep its equipment up to date and to help pay for other projects. No tax dollars are used to finance the power system operations.

The most important ingredients for the success of Bountiful City Light and Power are the support of the citizens of Bountiful, the Bountiful City Council, the Power Commission and the great dedication of the Power Department employees. Its employees often work long hours during inclimate weather to restore power and ensure that reliable power is delivered to the customers. Bountiful City Light and Power continues to provide great service to its customers and looks forward to the opportunities that the new century will bring.