Oncor’s preferred route for a new high-voltage power line running from Krum to Anna is also one of the most direct, crossing a portion of the Greenbelt Corridor.

The preferred route is the southernmost of the proposed options. Word came Wednesday when Oncor filed its application in Austin with the Public Utility Commission of Texas to build the 345-kilovolt transmission line.

The project includes up to 95 alternate routes in four counties, according to Oncor spokeswoman Catherine Cuellar.

“We’re required by law to submit a preferred route,” Cuellar said.

The company is sending out notices to 1,700 landowners in 35 cities about the plans, she said.

The transmission line is part of a $4.93 billion project to increase the state’s capacity for wind-generated power to 18,456 megawatts each year. In March, the PUCT began approving sets of lines that should bring more wind power generated near Snyder and Sweetwater and in the Panhandle to the state’s more populous areas.

The entire project is scheduled to be completed in 2013.

Wednesday’s filing triggered two deadlines provided for by law. Individuals have 30 days to file for a special status in order to be able to participate in the process. The deadline is Oct. 8.

In addition, the PUCT must choose the final route by March 7. About half the time, commissioners choose the preferred route without making changes, Cuellar said.

Property owners along the Greenbelt and others who enjoy the natural area connecting Ray Roberts and Lewisville lakes have protested the placement of additional power lines there. They looked for help from a number of public groups, including the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Denton County Commissioners passed a resolution Aug. 31 opposing all proposed routes through the county. Aubrey, Pilot Point and Sanger also opposed the routes.

The Corps released a statement Wednesday saying that it had evaluated all six of Oncor’s options in relation to the Greenbelt, including the option to disallow the crossing of the natural area again by the utility. Currently, Oncor has an easement in the area of the preferred route. The Corps named that route as a viable alternative, but no other, through the Greenbelt.

Residents in the Greenbelt area hoped that the Corps could deny the use outright, but the agency does not have the authority to go against the state’s public interest. Without federal interests in the land, the Corps cannot deny it, according to Corps spokesman Clay Church.

Cuellar said Oncor has both the Corps' and the city of Denton's input on the preferred route.

The Greenbelt Alliance of Denton County released a prepared statement Thursday, restating its opposition to any route through the natural area and pointing to unresolved issues such as impact on trees, vegetation and wildlife, according to spokesman Matt Welch.

“This possible route may require new utility towers to be constructed,” Welch wrote, adding that even changes to the current proposal could present a unique threat. “There are still proposed routes included in Oncor’s submission … that would box in the Greenbelt in the shape of a utility line rectangle.”

Sanger resident Jeffrey Lichtman welcomed the news. Had the preferred route been north of Ray Roberts Lake — instead of through the Greenbelt — he, his wife and the family business likely would have been affected.

“Thank God for that,” Lichtman said. “But we will not go to sleep on it. We’ll see what’s next.”

PEGGY HEINKEL-WOLFE can be reached at 940-566-6881. Her e-mail address is pheinkel-wolfe@dentonrc.com .