What is the Everett-Delta transmission line and why does it matter? It is a new 3.5-mile 115-kilovolt power line Snohomish County PUD is building to connect the Everett Substation (west of I-5 between McDougall and Smith) to the Delta Switching Station (north of the SR 529 / West Marine View Drive interchange). Construction begins spring 2027; in service by summer 2027. It is the electrical backbone that makes the entire Everett waterfront, downtown, and north-end building wave possible — the Millwright District, the downtown stadium, Mosaic Apartments, and every heat pump, EV charger, and commercial kitchen going into new buildings along the corridor all depend on this line having enough capacity.
Most of the coverage of Everett’s development boom focuses on what’s being built: the Millwright District’s 300-plus waterfront apartments, Skotdal Real Estate’s seven-story Mosaic Apartments on Pacific Avenue, the downtown stadium breaking ground in September 2026, the Sage Investment Group converting the 9602 19th Street SE Econo Lodge into 124 studios, and the Port of Everett’s continuing Restaurant Row expansion. What rarely gets covered is what has to be true underground and overhead before any of those buildings can function at full electrical load.
That’s what the Everett-Delta transmission line is about.
Snohomish County PUD held two public open houses on May 7, 2026 — 4 to 5:30 p.m. and 6 to 7:30 p.m., both at PUD headquarters at 2320 California Street in Everett — to explain the project to residents. Here is what those open houses covered, and why this infrastructure decision matters for every household, business, and development project in the corridor.
What the Line Actually Is
The Everett-Delta project is a new 115-kilovolt transmission line, approximately 3.5 miles long, connecting two existing PUD assets at opposite ends of the city’s growth corridor. On the south end: the Everett Substation, located just west of Interstate 5 between McDougall Avenue and Smith Avenue, north of 36th Street. On the north end: the Delta Switching Station, sitting just north of the State Route 529 and West Marine View Drive interchange in north Everett.
A 115-kV line is what the utility industry calls mid-tier transmission — not the bulk transmission highways that BPA operates at 230kV and 500kV, but the layer that connects the high-voltage backbone to the local distribution substations that actually serve neighborhoods. It’s the difference between having electricity available somewhere in the region and having it available at the right voltage, in the right quantity, at a specific address on Pacific Avenue or Marine View Drive.
PUD’s stated reasons for building the line now: increasing electrical demand in the northern regions of the service territory; the need to keep voltage stable if local power is interrupted; delivering more electricity from south to north to ease strain on the current system during peak hours; and supporting at least one new substation in the Everett area tied to the City of Everett’s 2044 Comprehensive Plan growth projections.
The Development Connection
The geographic overlap between this line and the Everett development map is not a coincidence. The line runs through or adjacent to the same West Marine View Drive corridor where the $113 million Port of Everett waterfront pipeline project, the Edgewater Bridge reconstruction, and the Port’s terminal investments have all been stacking up. The Millwright District Phase 2’s 300-plus apartments are in this zone. The downtown stadium site — with a September 2026 groundbreaking target — is within the service territory of the substations this line feeds.
Every new building in this corridor carries electrical load. A 300-unit apartment building with heat pumps, EV charging stations in the garage, and full commercial kitchen and amenity spaces runs roughly 1 to 1.5 megawatts of peak demand. A commercial development with restaurant tenants adds more. Multiply that across the Millwright District, Mosaic Apartments, the stadium, and the pipeline of projects in the Imagine Everett comprehensive plan, and the aggregate load growth is significant — exactly the kind of growth that forces a utility to invest in transmission before the buildings open, not after.
PUD’s 2044 Comprehensive Plan projection shows Everett absorbing a significant share of Snohomish County’s population growth over the next two decades. The Everett-Delta line is the infrastructure that makes that projection electrically possible, not just politically aspirational. For more on the waterfront development pipeline this line serves, see What 15 Years and $350 Million Built: The Port of Everett Story and Everett’s Downtown Stadium in 2026: The Complete Guide.
Timeline: When This Gets Built
- May 7, 2026: Public open houses at PUD headquarters, 2320 California Street, Everett
- Environmental review and permitting: Ongoing through 2026
- Spring 2027: Construction begins
- Summer 2027: Line in service — approximately six months of construction
What It Means for Existing Everett Customers
The most direct benefit for existing residential and commercial customers is grid reliability. The Everett-Delta line adds a second transmission path into the north Everett grid, which means that if the existing line fails during a storm or equipment outage, the system can reroute power without causing a widespread outage. PUD’s language — “prevent the electric system from experiencing low voltage should local power be interrupted” — is describing what engineers call N-1 contingency planning: designing the system so it continues to work even if one element fails.
For neighborhoods in the 36th Street to Marine View Drive corridor — including Bayside, the north waterfront, and the areas near PUD headquarters — this is a direct reduction in outage risk during major weather events. Also see the broader development context in Skotdal’s Mosaic Apartments: 102 Art-Infused Homes on Pacific Avenue.
What It Means for Businesses and Developers
If you are developing or planning to develop in the Everett waterfront, downtown, or north-end corridor, the Everett-Delta line affects your project in two practical ways.
First, PUD’s ability to grant electrical service connections to new large-load customers depends on transmission capacity upstream. The Everett-Delta line adds that upstream capacity. Second, the summer 2027 in-service date matters for your construction and opening timeline. Buildings opening in fall 2027 or later are in good shape. Projects with 2026 or early 2027 openings should confirm with PUD directly whether interim capacity arrangements are needed.
PUD’s project contact information is available at snopud.com under System Improvements.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Everett-Delta 115kV transmission line?
A new 3.5-mile power line Snohomish County PUD is building to connect the Everett Substation (near 36th Street and I-5) to the Delta Switching Station (near SR 529 and Marine View Drive). Scheduled to go in service by summer 2027.
Why is PUD building this line now?
To support growing electrical demand in the Everett area, prevent low-voltage conditions during local power outages, deliver more electricity from south to north during peak hours, and support at least one new substation tied to Everett’s 2044 Comprehensive Plan growth projections.
When does construction start and when will the line be in service?
Construction begins spring 2027. The line is targeted to be in service by summer 2027, with construction taking approximately six months.
How does this affect the Everett waterfront development projects?
Every new building in the waterfront and downtown corridor adds electrical load. The Everett-Delta line adds the upstream transmission capacity PUD needs to connect new developments at full load without imposing service restrictions or connection queues.
Does this reduce the risk of power outages for existing Everett customers?
Yes. The line adds a second transmission path into the north Everett grid, enabling rerouting around a failed line segment rather than causing widespread outage. This is N-1 contingency coverage.
Will there be construction disruption near Marine View Drive?
Some work in the corridor is expected in spring-summer 2027 as the line connects near SR 529 and Marine View Drive. PUD will provide specific construction routing details as the project advances through permitting.
Where can I get more information about the project?
Snohomish County PUD maintains a project page at snopud.com under Community & Environment → Our Energy Future → Reliability → System Improvements → Everett-Delta Transmission Line.
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