Keeping the lights on is a never-ending responsibility. This past month, the United Power service territory was hit hard by the strongest storm in state history resulting in numerous outages and long days for our linemen. The rapid response linemen made to restore power to members affected by strong winds and blinding snow illustrates the danger of their responsibility.

Over the course of this past year, United Power members have been no stranger to severe weather. Summer brought us severe thunder storms, including high winds, large hail and lightning, resulting in significant damage to personal property and United Power’s infrastructure, while severe winter weather has contributed to many outages over the past few months.

Whether threatening clouds dot the horizon or snow blankets the ground, our linemen are prepared to respond. They’re on call 24 hours a day, regardless of weather. Without our linemen, the electricity we expect and rely on to power our lives wouldn’t be possible.

Today is National Lineman Appreciation Day, celebrated each year on April 18 to pay homage to the men and women who put themselves in harm’s way to keep the lights on. We invite our members to take a moment to thank our United Power linemen for the work they do.

Drop a kind note in the mail, through email at unitednewsline@unitedpower.com or thank them on our social media (use the hashtag #ThankALineman) to show your appreciation. If you see them in the field, remember they could be restoring power to you, a family member or your neighbor. Drive attentively and give them plenty of clearance to do their work safely.

Linemen are the backbone of United Power. What they do, they do for you.

United Power
Thank A Lineman
500 Cooperative Way
Brighton, CO 80603

Brighton, Colo. — United Power celebrated a special cooperative milestone with members at its Annual Meeting & Director Election on April 17, 2019. The Brighton-headquartered electric utility joined a short list of rural electric cooperatives that have been providing safe and reliable power for 80 years. United Power highlighted its connection with the communities it serves with a special member video featuring long-term members throughout the territory.

More than 381 registered members attended the Annual Meeting and voted in the director election. South District incumbent, Keith E. Alquist II, retained his seat, receiving 2940 votes. Bradley J. Case also received 2745 votes in the South District election. Elizabeth Martin, East District, and Ursula J. Morgan, West District, retained their seats with 5362 and 5342 votes, respectively.

Over the course of the past year, United Power built on and completed some exciting, previously announced projects. The cooperative powered the state’s largest battery storage project in December, which is expected to save nearly $1 million each year. As the cooperative’s membership continues to grow, and with the acquisition of Frederick Power & Light, United Power also began to renovate and man its new building out west, the Carbon Valley Service Center.

“The new facility gives us the ability to respond to outages in the western part of our service territory more quickly,” said John Parker, United Power Chief Executive Officer. “These projects are aimed at driving United Power toward the future and continuing to think of our members first.”

In honor of Lineman Appreciation Day on April 18^th, United Power presented a special video covering lineman Kelly Snow, who went to Guatemala with a team of fellow linemen from Oklahoma and Colorado. Over a three-week period, linemen brought power to two remote jungle villages that had never had electricity. Later this year, Snow will return to Guatemala with a new team of linemen to bring power to two new villages.

“Cooperation among cooperatives is one of our core principles,” Snow said. “Cooperatives were established to bring electricity to rural communities, and those who others didn’t want to serve. Being able to represent United Power in Guatemala is a huge honor, and I’m excited to be going back.”

United Power has been and will continue to be a partner in the communities it has served for the past 80 years. As the cooperative moves forward, it continues to have an eye on the future and look for the best way to bring safe and reliable power to its members.

United Power proudly announces its scholarship recipients for 2019. Each year, the cooperative awards more than $19,000 in scholarships to outstanding students in its service territory. The United Power Scholarship Committee selected seventeen high school seniors based on grades, test scores, extracurricular activities and a brief essay. Applications are made available at the end of each year.

United Power offices will have modified business hours on Wednesday, April 17 as employees prepare and set up for our Annual Meeting. 

United Power lobbies will open from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. on Wednesday, April 17th. 

The Annual Meeting will be held at the Adams County Fairgrounds beginning at 4:30 p.m. All members are invited to attend the meeting for dinner, director election, co-op update and door prizes.

In the years leading up to its 75th anniversary in 2013, United Power experienced unprecedented growth for an electric cooperative, more than doubling in size. The way the cooperative serves its members has changed with the development and advancement of technology available to both provide power for and communicate with its members. This is the final piece in a three part series chronicling the cooperative’s history leading up to its 80th Annual Meeting this April.

Following the addition of Brighton to the United Power family in 1993, the cooperative entered into a period of unprecedented growth. Since adding Brighton, United Power has grown more than five times in size, remaining one of the fastest growing cooperatives in the country over the past 25 years.

Much of United Power’s growth could be attributed to Denver’s continued northeast expansion. In the 1990s, construction on Denver International Airport was completed adjacent to the cooperative’s service territory and E-470 was extended into its southern quadrant. This provided greater access to the area, which offered affordable housing options and the opportunity to grow with the communities, mimicking the growth of Northglenn and Thornton years earlier.

Knowing it would serve new electrical loads from homes and businesses moving into the area, United Power pursued an active role with communities as they planned for future growth and planned infrastructure to support that growth.

As new residents flocked northeast to Brighton and its surrounding communities and north along the I-25 corridor, the cooperative outgrew the “typical” rural electric mold. The difference gave United Power new financial clout, allowing it to become the responsive utility the members and communities it served needed.

United Power constantly surveys technical innovations that can help better provide electric service that’s safe, reliable and cost-effective. The ongoing evolution of technology has created a cooperative that looks far different today than it did just a few years ago, and United Power has adopted a strategy placing it at the forefront of innovation among cooperatives across the country.

United Power has taken proactive steps to keep power flowing while providing members with the tools necessary to monitor and control their usage. Improvements to the cooperative’s infrastructure monitoring system, Supervisory Control and Data System (SCADA), provide more information related to outages and potential problems. The newly installed Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) allows members to view detailed information related to their usage trends and history through the Power Portal.

Over the past few years, United Power has also installed innovative renewable programs as the technology has become easier and cheaper to obtain and install. From powering the country’s first community solar field to the state’s largest battery storage facility, the promise of a more efficient and economical future sits on the back of the innovations in technology that have helped to move the cooperative forward.

Over the past 80 years, United Power has grown from a small rural electric cooperative serving just over 100 members to a progressive urban cooperative with more than 90,000 meters. It has overcome a competitive buyout bid from the state’s largest investor-owned electric utility, and set the bar for other cooperatives to follow as it adopts new and innovative technology. United Power is proud to celebrate 80 years of serving its members and providing safe and reliable power.

United Power is dedicated to keeping our members’ lights on. That wouldn’t be possible without the help of our skilled linemen, who work each day behind the scenes to improve our system and prevent outages before they happen. On April 18th, we will join in celebrating National Lineman Appreciation Day, honoring the hard work, innovation and dedication of America’s electrical lineworkers.

Linemen must be prepared to face daily situations that may be less than ideal, regularly tasked with resolving intricate and hazardous problems in unknown or perilous conditions.

During the past year, our linemen have had to help restore power to members following severe hail storms and high winds, which caught many offguard. When severe weather hits our service territory, our linemen are ready to assess the situation and begin the process of restoring power. When the skies are clear and the wind is calm, our linemen are monitoring our system and making improvements to prevent outages where possible.

Our linemen are on call 24 hours a day, ready to respond to any situation in any type of weather. So next time you lose power, rest assured a highly trained United Power crew is on the way, dedicated to getting the lights back on quickly and safely.

Without our linemen, the power that makes our member’s homes comfortable wouldn’t be possible. We invite our members to take a moment to thank our United Power linemen for the work they do. Use #ThankALineman on social media to show your support, or take a moment to drop a kind note in the mail.

United Power
Thank a Lineman
500 Cooperative Way
Brighton, CO 80603