To the Editor:
I am writing in support of Gary Anderson’s column “Power poles are so 19th century” ( Dec. 10, Page A6), and would like to expand on his point that power poles and lines are an aesthetic disaster.
People travel to Maine from all over the world for its rural and coastal beauty and many beautiful towns and villages. Brunswick is one of those towns, and yet I have watched in horror as the power poles become ever more heavily laden with wires and cables. It is a slow but seemingly inexorable process whose cumnulative effect is fouling our vistas more and more each year.
Perhaps the most dramatic example is the First Parish Church — one of Brunswick’s most beautiful and visible landmarks, yet it is sad that it is only visible through a tangle of power lines. It is impossible to photograph from any vantage point that gives one a shot unmarred by power lines, and some views of the church are almost completely obscured by overloaded poles, one of which looks like it is about to fall over. This aesthetic disaster rankles me even more because, not long ago, all the surrounding streets were torn up and repaved — a perfect opportunity for the town to insist that the power lines to go underground.
I live on a narrow, lovely street and the power line mess is getting worse every year. Recently the street was torn up to place natural gas lines underground — another missed opportunity, and another example of how all other utilities are buried. I am sure there are technical difficulties but, as Mr. Anderson points out, it’s clear they are not insurmountable.
I encourage anyone reading this to begin looking up as they travel around Brunswick. There’s not a single street that would not be improved by burying the lines and replacing power poles with less obtrusive street lights.
Even outer Pleasant Street, the blighted entrance to our town, would become much more pleasant if power lines and poles disappeared, revealing the significant landscaping efforts most of the businesses have made.
Benjamin Swan
Brunswick
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