Xcel will extend a natural gas main line to Boettcher Farm Preserve development on Fawn Lake Road. So says Mike Parker, chair of the Linwood Town Board after attending a meeting June 8 with the commerce department and the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission. Steve Strandlund, developer of the property is to pay the $78,000 cost of extending the line. This is about $18,000 more than the original estimate. Robert Vose, an attorney who specializes in utilities issues, argued forcefully for the decision and laid out the problem very clearly, according to Parker. His argument was that if the utility company can extend a gas main past a five- or 20-acre parcel to reach an area to which it is to provide gas service, it does not make sense to refuse to extend a gas main 300 yards to reach a development of about 96 homes. There were others in attendance at the meeting who were interested in the outcome. Parker is certain this will affect other developments in the state. ó Alice Pickering, Linwood Township Reporter

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Forest Lake Times
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