What a difference a year makes.
Almost exactly a year after a groundbreaking ceremony was held in an empty field in rural Gentry, Arkansas, a crowd gathered for a second time on Nov. 18 – this time in celebration of the new electric substation that will serve the community. And instead of grass, a mound of dirt, and ceremonial shovels, this time there were steel towers, transformers, and cables all protected by security fencing, along with a ceremonial ribbon to cut and mark the completion of the project.
“Today is all about the future of Gentry, specifically how this substation was built for Gentry's future in mind,” said Drew Landoll, Liberty’s Senior Director for Engineering and Project Management.
Liberty's electric customers in Gentry previously received power from a substation in nearby Decatur. With the area seeing tremendous growth, a portable substation was used to support the demand.
“We knew this (new substation) would be needed in order to provide reliable, quality service to the customers in this area,” Landoll said. “This substation will serve more than 2,000 customers through three new circuits, intersecting with the existing infrastructure. We’ve also added additional reclosers and switches, which will help reduce the number of outages for our customers and improve the overall quality of service.”
One of the three new circuits will be dedicated to supplying electricity to McKee Foods Corporation, one of the area’s largest employers.
Among those on hand for the ribbon cutting was Arkansas State Sen. Tyler Dees, who said the new substation was needed to serve the fastest growing region in the state.
“About 34 people a day are moving to Northwest Arkansas, and they’re coming to communities like Gentry because they want to raise their family here,” said Dees. “It’s exciting to see Liberty investing in this community here in Gentry and in our families, and in our small businesses.”
Janie Parks, Director of the Gentry Chamber Commerce, thanked Liberty for investing in the community’s future.
“We’re thankful for your investment in reliable, consistent quality electricity for our residential and business community,” she said. “Like Tyler said, our businesses are growing. We’ve had 20 new businesses open on Main Street in the last year and a half. With that growth comes the need for more electrical power, and Liberty has met the challenge. We all appreciate it.”