Oceanside and Netarts finally get a second power line
The beach at Oceanside, with Three Arch Rocks offshore. Photo: Another Believer, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
For decades, the lights in Oceanside and Netarts have depended on a single power line. One car hitting one pole, or one spruce coming down in a winter storm, could leave every customer past the break in the dark. As of this week, that’s no longer true.
Tillamook People’s Utility District announced Nov. 2 that it has energized its new nine-mile, 115-kilovolt transmission line from Tillamook to Oceanside, along with a new 24.9-kilovolt distribution substation in Oceanside. The project serves about 2,000 customers in the two communities and finishes a piece of work the utility first identified in its 1963 long-range plan.
“This significant project reflects decades of thoughtful planning, careful design, community collaboration, and dedicated construction,” General Manager Todd Simmons said. “We are proud to see this long-term vision become a reality. The new transmission line and substation are critical investments that will strengthen system reliability and support the evolving needs of our coastal communities.”
What changes for customers
Until now, Oceanside and Netarts were fed by one distribution line out of the Wilson River Substation. Damage anywhere along it could cut power to everyone downstream. The new line and substation give the area a second source, so crews can isolate a damaged section and restore service to the rest more quickly.
The utility also built in wider margins: sturdier structures, wider rights-of-way, and undergrounding of some new and existing lines. Those changes are aimed at the usual culprits on this stretch of coast, including storms, falling trees, vehicle crashes and equipment failures.
It won’t end outages entirely. A big enough windstorm can still take down lines. But for residents who have sat through long winter outages on the Three Capes route, a backup feed is a real change.
The project also helps the rest of central Tillamook County. Shifting load from Wilson River to the new Oceanside substation eases capacity limits, leaves room for growth and lets the PUD move load between substations during maintenance or outages.
Sixty years in the making
The line was on paper long before most current customers moved here. The 1963 plan flagged it, but the modern push began in 2007, when the PUD proposed a corridor. A version along Front Street stalled in 2014. The utility formed a Citizen Advisory Group in 2015, and a route was approved on Dec. 13, 2016.
Then came the permits and appeals. Tillamook County approved land-use permits in 2018. Opponents took the case to the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals, which ruled in March 2019, and then to the Oregon Court of Appeals, which ruled that June. The Oregon Public Utility Commission granted a certificate for the line in September 2019. Financing came through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service, and the utility bought a $710,000 transformer for the substation. Construction ran through 2024 and 2025.
The finish line moved at least once. In September 2025, the PUD told The Oceansider that construction was on schedule but that coordinating the new connections with the Bonneville Power Administration and Pacific Power probably wouldn’t be done until mid-2026, which meant no relief for that winter’s outage season. The line went live this fall instead, ahead of the 2026-27 storm season.
Still to come
A few pieces remain. The Netarts underground line is still being completed. At the Wilson River Substation, incoming Bonneville and Pacific Power lines have been reconfigured to make future repairs easier, and the project included work to shore up the Pacific Power transmission line serving northern Tillamook County. Automated switching equipment that should restore power faster after problems on that Pacific Power line is being installed and is expected to be finished in 2027.
“We are grateful to our customers and community members for their patience, collaboration, and support throughout this project,” Simmons said. “Their partnership was essential to bringing this long-planned project to completion.”
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