Town of Bear Creek, Sauk County, Wisconsin
Keep Bear Valley whole.
A 765,000-volt transmission line is proposed through the middle of our valley. Wisconsin's siting policy says new lines should use existing corridors first. We are asking the state to hold the developer to that policy.
What is proposed
Midcontinent Grid Solutions (MGS) plans the BECI line from Crawford County to the Illinois border. One of its study routes, Segment 10, runs straight through Bear Valley.
- 765 kV
- Line voltage. Existing lines in this area carry 69 or 161 kV.
- 180–200 ft
- Steel tower height. Today's local line structures stand about 70 ft.
- 180–250 ft
- Width of the right-of-way, cleared of trees for the life of the line.
- 190 mi
- Approximate length, from Bell Center to the Illinois state line.
Sources: MISO BECI Selection Report (Jan. 2026); MGS project fact sheet (Aug. 2026); No 765 Line.
Why we are speaking up
The Valley
A spring-fed trout stream, sedge meadow, remnant prairie and oak savanna, and a State Threatened bird, in some of the least disturbed country in the Driftless Area.
Our Work
Years of surveys, prescribed fire and restoration, documented and dated, so this land passes on in better shape than we found it.
The Law
State policy ranks new corridors last. The route through Bear Valley is a new corridor, and the developer has not shown why existing corridors cannot be used.
For the generations after us
Our children and grandchildren fish, hunt, explore and learn here. This is the land we intend to hand on to them, whole.
Wis. Stat. § 1.12(6)
Wisconsin's order for siting new transmission lines
State policy lists where new high-voltage lines should go, in order of priority, to the greatest extent feasible consistent with economic and engineering considerations, reliability, and protection of the environment.
- (a)Existing utility corridors
- (b)Highway and railroad corridors
- (c)Recreational trails, where the line can be built below ground and avoids environmentally sensitive areas
- (d)New corridorsSegment 10 is a new corridor through Bear Valley.
We support a reliable grid and do not dispute the need for this line. We oppose routing it through Bear Valley against these priorities.
Where the project stands
No route has been approved. The decisions that matter most are still ahead.
- MISO, the regional grid operator, approves the Tranche 2.1 plan that includes BECI.
- MISO selects Transource to build BECI. Transource develops it with BHE Transmission as MGS.
- MGS publishes 78 study segments and holds its first open houses.
- First deadline for comments to MGS on the study segments.
- MGS's second round of public open houses. MGS then expects to refine and finalize its routes by the end of 2026.
- MGS expected to apply to the Public Service Commission (PSC) for a permit, naming a preferred and an alternate route.
- Expected PSC decision, after an environmental impact statement and public hearings.
- Construction, if approved.
Source: MGS project fact sheet (Aug. 2026); MISO BECI Selection Report.
Get updates
We send short notices when something changes: new route maps, open-house dates, the PSC filing, and comment deadlines.
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