This is a cautionary tale for folks who think that running power lines underground is some sort of magic solution to overhead power line damage. At least with overhead power lines, the damage can usually be repaired within hours, not days. Not to mention the potential damage caused by digging without calling 811 first.

The City of Mountain View ran into the same sort of problem with underground utilities on Shoreline Boulevard, which it wants to widen to accommodate an exclusive bus lane and bike buffers. See the agenda packet for the 5/24/22 City Council meeting, Consent Calendar item 4.3 Council Report. Something similar happened with a Middlefield Road project in North Fair Oaks -- (same blooper, same contractor, same $2 million-plus price tag), which was reported in the 10/31/22 Palo Alto Daily Post.

If this is a KNOWN problem for years now how can these easements be denied? If you deny a public easement and the agency begins condemnation proceedings, a judge will hear both sides and render a final decision. CLEARLY these easements are needed for community safety and welfare and patchwork fixes are CLEARLY not acceptable. PG&E is inept.

Most public agencies, institutions and authorities have the power to take over land, structures or other privately owned assets as long as the purpose is to advance community safety or welfare and the owner is offered fair compensation. This power is called condemnation. For example, condemnation could be used by a city in order to widen a road or extend a bridge. If you deny a public easement and the agency begins condemnation proceedings, a judge will hear both sides and render a final decision.

@MyOpinion Good point there. A power outage is definitely an emergency in an immediate sense. Although the story focuses on a Thanksgiving dinner gone awry, you can imagine a situation where someone is relying on electrical power for a critical medical device. Think iron lung.

Thankgiving dinner failure? Survivable. Critical medical device failure? Perhaps not. Thankfully it doesn't sound like that was the case on Yorkton Drive.

What's a bit unclear to me from the story was exactly who defined the easements? Neighbors? The city?

Susan Tighe should run for City Council! Once you are in a position of influence you can lean on PGE as they will need other permits in Mountain View that could be denied until PGE permanently fix's Yorkton Drive.

Agree with Concerned…. Ms Tighe should consider running for council. We need strong candidates who represent homeowners.

That's a nice theory. But what if the homeowners who refused the easement run for office instead? You don't think they would "represent homeowners" just as much as Susan Tighe?