Manhattan Beach

The City Council moved ahead this week with plans to relocate utility wires underground by authorizing a survey of two sample areas of the city to determine if residents will agree to help pay for the project.

The unanimous action was taken after an ad hoc committee reported that if the city paid for half the cost of placing the utilities underground, the residential share would come to $2,000-$3,000 per lot over a 20-year period, or about $250 to $350 per year. The city’s share of about $350,000 per year would come from the capital improvement fund.

The two test districts would be the first to have underground utilities if the city decides to continue the project. The areas are bounded by 1st and 8th streets and Ocean and Manhattan avenues, and by 23rd and 28th streets and Highland and Ocean avenues.

According to ad hoc committee chairman Larry Dougharty, results of an earlier citywide survey indicated that acceptance of the program was highest among residents in coastal areas west of Valley Drive, where the two test areas have been selected. Residents living east of Sepulveda Boulevard were the least supportive.