A homeowner in south Edmonton is locked in a power struggle with EPCOR over the placement of a transformer on her front lawn.
Sameena Qureshi returned from a trip in September 2013 to find a hole on the edge of her property where the electrical box used to be.
It was replaced by a larger box, moved toward the centre of the yard and directly in line with her living room window.
“I was shocked,” she said. “It’s an eyesore.”
Qureshi said she was aware EPCOR was going to upgrade the electrical systems in the area. But the company never provided specifics.
“It was my general understanding that the new transformers would go where the old transformers were,” she said.
After a year and a half, she said she still has not heard a good explanation.
“I said, ‘Did anyone do the common sense test when this new location was chosen?’ That was my first question.
“Since then I’ve asked many questions and pretty much it all revolves around what are the scientific reasons for this placement and I’ve gotten all sorts of different answers.”
EPCOR spokesperson Amanda Ash said the box is located on city property and the move was necessary to avoid utilities and protect a 30-year-old tree.
“The new ground grid system requires deeper excavation,” she said.
In a letter, EPCOR says Qureshi must decide Friday whether to accept a $1,500 offer for landscaping around the transformer.
