A late August decision by the Knightstown Town Council is proving to have some powerfully good consequences.

Last week, Town Council members and officials had high praise for the Indiana Municipal Power Agency (IMPA), which is helping lead Knightstown into brighter times where its beleagured electric utility is concerned.

Knightstown hired IMPA Service Corp to help the town repair and improve aging infrastructure as well as take care of long-neglected tree growth. As 2018 comes to a close, Utilities Supt. Randy Anderson said the decision may go down as one of the best made during the entire year.

“IMPA has done a fantastic job,” Anderson said.

The veteran utility man, who’s worked here for nearly a quarter of century, said two examples of excellence come to mind with IMPA.

The first was on Nov. 7, when an IMPA team did an emergency pole change west of Knightstown on U.S. 40.

“The pole was ready to fall down,” Anderson said. “They responded that day and started working on it right away. That’s the kind of service they’ve been providing.”

Then when the surprise autumn ice storm hit on Nov. 15, IMPA’s worth was recognized once again.

“We had to change out a transformer that evening,” Anderson said. “It took IMPA about 45 minutes to change this transformer, which is as quick as I’ve seen anybody change a transformer.”

Anderson said it’s been his experience that a transformer is “a half a day job.”

“They just have much better equipment to do the work with,” Anderson said.

Earlier this month, on Dec. 10, a transformer at the intermediate school needed replaced. The transformer, Anderson said, dated back to when the facility was built in the 1960s. 

IMPA officials also worked with decorative street lights through town.

The Indiana Municipal Power Agency (IMPA) is a wholesale electric power provider serving the needs of 61 cities and towns in Indiana and Ohio, including Knightstown. IMPA Service Corp, a not-for-profit corporation, was formed by IMPA to provide cost-effective services beyond power supply and transmission to IMPA’s members and other municipal electric utilities.

Many of IMPA’s members needed engineering, project management, rate design, management consulting and retail customer services they could not cost-effectively provide with in-house staff. These members recognized they could meet these needs in an economic manner by working together. Today, IMPA Service Corp provides these cost-effective services to municipally-owned utilities throughout the state.

Anderson told town council members thanks in large part to IMPA, the year is ending much better than it began.

“It’s been some kind of year,” Anderson said. “We’ve faced a lot of problems and challenges, to say the least. Everything’s starting to look a lot better, electric wise.”  

Anderson expressed thanks to Joe McIntosh, the Greenfield Electric Department and “all the guys from IMPA.”

“They are a great bunch of guys to work with,” Anderson said.

Anderson also expressed appreciation for the local team.

“Especially the five guys I have on staff here,” he said, “and the girls in the office. Everybody’s working together.”

Source: The Courier-Times