The Colorado Springs Utilities Board of Directors approved a trio of land acquisitions at its meeting Wednesday afternoon to prepare for a future relocation of a power substation.

The three agreements cover roughly 7.3 acres of land near North Academy Boulevard and East La Salle Street, near the existing Rock Island substation. The deals are worth a combined $7.26 million.

The Rock Island substation is now located in the large median where Academy Boulevard splits into separate north and south roads. Utilities staff said the location had very little room to expand and that any construction or maintenance project that does take place there causes major traffic issues. The land would allow Utilities to relocate the substation to a larger section of land on the other side of North Academy Boulevard.

The project is not scheduled to take place until at least 2031. Land Resource Manager Jessica Davis told the board that the agreements were up for discussion now because the properties had come up for sale or had owners who agreed to negotiate with Utilities.

“This provides a great opportunity to realize savings for our customers. Purchasing vacant land means the price is lower, and we will not have demolition or associated landowner relocation costs,” Utilities spokesperson Danielle Nieves said.

The largest segment of the land, covering 5.4 acres, is owned by the Greeley-based RH Development LLC. The other two parcels are owned by a family trust and an LLC set up for the single plot of land.

The three resolutions approving the purchases will be sent to Colorado Springs City Council for final approval in December. Councilmembers also serve as the Utilities Board of Directors.

There is one more parcel needed for the future substation. Davis said Utilities was in active negotiations and that an acquisition agreement may come up for a vote in early 2026.

Nieves said Thursday that the future of the current substation property has not been decided because the new project is so far out.

Last year, the Utilities Board unanimously approved the rezoning eight acres to build a new substation called Central Bluffs at the corner of Austin Bluffs Parkway and Goldenrod Drive. Construction on the new station is scheduled to begin in early 2026 and would potentially bring the site online by January 2027.

Nieves said the Central Bluffs project was moving faster than Rock Island because of growing power demand in that section of Colorado Springs and the need to replace older infrastructure. The Central Bluffs station will take the place of three aging facilities.