Indio to break ground on electrical upgrade to solve power struggles

Next week, Indio and the Imperial Irrigation District (IID) will break ground on a new electrical substation, a pivotal step in a multi-year strategy to resolve the capacity shortages that have slowed local development.

The ceremony marks the start of construction on the Avenue 42 Project, an effort to expand the grid’s capacity as the city faces mounting energy demands.

The project—estimated in 2023 to cost $12.1 million—involves installing an additional electrical substation bank and configuring three transformer banks, with the end goal of making room for more residential and commercial development.

It’s a highly visible step that was only possible after years of work behind the scenes between elected officials and IID.

Indio and the East Valley are the fastest-growing part of the Coachella Valley, yet that growth has been stunted by an inability to secure documents that guarantee a project will have access to electricity.

Tom Kirk, executive director of the Coachella Valley Association of Governments, told the Riverside County Board of Supervisors last year that developers attempting to expand projects in the region have faced challenges getting will serve letters from IID, and when they do receive them, conditions often require tens of millions of dollars in upfront costs for new substations.

In May, Indio joined La Quinta and Riverside County to form the Coachella Valley Power Agency Joint Powers Authority (JPA) to address issues of representation.

Though 65% of IID’s rate-paying customers live in the Coachella Valley, Riverside County residents are ineligible to serve on IID’s board, which is made up of members from Imperial County.

In addition to the new Avenue 42 substation, there are three other major electrical infrastructure projects on the horizon in Indio, and another in La Quinta.

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