LETTER: Vashon needs its own public utility district

Puget Sound Energy (PSE) has once again been befuddled by a minor wind storm. They let me know my power was out (I live on Pohl Road) with numerous emails, then two more that announced “Good news! Your power has been restored.” The cause of the outage, according to the emails, was “trees/vegetation,” which presumably were blown across overhead wires. The bad news is that a minor storm causes outages when a solution is so obvious — bury the wires.

Now that I have told you that PSE is neglecting Vashon, and will add that it is nothing more than a corporate monopoly that is more profit than customer oriented, I will suggest a solution. Vashon needs a public utility district (PUD). There are more than 20 PUDs in Washington State that provide electricity. These work. With a PUD, excess revenue goes back to the community and can be used to modernize the power grid with underground wires. Vashon gains dependability and esthetics and loses nothing. PSE loses a cash cow. Which is better — PSE or PUD?

— Bob Krimmel