UPDATE: Utilities board votes to decommission Drake Power Plant

The Colorado Springs Utilities Board voted Wednesday evening to decommission the Drake Power Plant by 2035.

The plant was damaged by a fire in 2014.

A customer advisory group that was made up of 15 volunteers previously recommended decommissioning the plant no earlier than 2020.

A $170 million project is underway to make the coal-fired power plant more environmentally friendly.

A new scrubber is being installed on unit 6. It is expected to reduce sulfur dioxide emissions by 90-percent.

The new emissions control equipment is being added to drake to comply with EPA regulations.

“We continue to focus on that phrase no later than, but at least there’s some ability to plan our city’s future,” said Sandra Edmondson, CEO of the Downtown Partnership.

A specific timeline of when each unit of the plant will close, will be decided at a meeting next month.

Board member and City Councilman Keith King said CSU will be able to work on decommissioning the plant over a long period of time so rates will not go up. He said the goal is to make rates go down for customers in the long run.