Early construction of Strawberry Dam
SALT LAKE CITY — During a signing ceremony, the Bureau of Reclamation transferred ownership of 35.5 miles of the Strawberry Valley Project 46-kilovolt power transmission system to Southern Utah Valley Power Systems. SUVPS is a non-profit political subdivision, organized under the laws of the state of Utah and comprised of members from Payson City Power, Salem City Power, Spanish Fork City Power, Springville City Power, and the South Utah Valley Electric Service District.
SUVPS and its predecessors have provided electricity with this transmission system for nearly five decades. Reclamation transferred ownership of the power distribution system in 2014 and formally recognized SUVPS as the operation and maintenance contractor for the transmission system in 2015.
Through development of the Strawberry Valley Project, the United States held title to the 46kV power transmission system and related easements serving south Utah Valley, namely the communities of Spanish Fork, Springville, Payson, Salem, and the unincorporated communities of Elk Ridge and Woodland Hills. The Strawberry Valley Project provided the first large-scale transmountain diversion from the Colorado River Basin to the Bonneville Basin and was one of the earliest Reclamation projects to develop hydroelectric energy.
“I’m proud that the Bureau of Reclamation was part of the Strawberry Valley Project,” remarked Upper Colorado Basin Regional Director Wayne Pullan during the ceremony. “We brought the technical and financial capabilities, we created the power generation, transmission and distribution systems, and we built the dam that provided water to this community. Those are accomplishments we can all be proud of.”
The title transfer agreement and quit claim deed will reduce administrative costs, increase operational efficiencies, and enable SUVPS to fund improvements for the system.
“Reclamation is proud of the heritage we share with this group,” Pullan shared with partners at the signing ceremony, “and we will continue to be good partners in the management of Strawberry Valley Project’s water.”
Reclamation and members of the SUVPS, along with numerous federal, state, local and municipal agencies, contributed to the successful completion of the title transfer and quit claim deed.
