Northern Colorado business park calls on Xcel Energy to revise outage policies; “We are at their mercy”

The businesses in an industrial park on the outer edge of Fort Collins are banding together and expressing their frustrations about recent power shutoffs by Xcel Energy. Businesses on the southwest corner of I-25 and Mulberry Street have recently experienced what Xcel calls a “Public Safety Power Shutoff,” or a temporary pause in electric service amid a severe weather event like strong winds.

Businesses in the area, like American Furniture Warehouse, are now demanding that Xcel Energy makes changes to help prevent them from losing important business days due to lack of power.

“We get hundreds of customers within the course of a day here,” said Rich Burlingame, store manager at the AFW in Fort Collins.

Burlingame said his store makes more than $3 million a month in sales, meaning a single day without power can result in them losing tens of thousands of dollars.

“We are just kind of at (Xcel’s) mercy right now,” Burlingame said. “The customers that come out here are frustrated and mad.”

Burlingame’s showroom is large and only has windows at the front door. The rest of the massive showroom relies on lighting to draw customers toward their products.

He said the power shutoffs leave him unable to open as the building would be dangerous and the computer systems would not work for customer payment and checkout. He also noted the building gets cold very quickly without power.

One of his main frustrations comes when he looked out the door and sees all of the businesses across the street with power and still operating at the same time his power is out.

“Surrounding our businesses, all the businesses are open. It doesn’t make any sense,” Burlingame said.

At Forney Welding and Metalworking, located a few buildings down from AFW in the same business park, they too have been losing precious hours for their staff due to some power outages.

Steven Anderson, CEO of the company, said his warehouse and distribution center comes to a screeching halt when Xcel shuts off power due to strong wind events. He said that ultimately results in his hourly employees being sent home without pay.

“When they have to leave it is an 8-hour day they have to miss out on,” Anderson said.

His company uses their Fort Collins warehouse to box welding materials and ship them to customers. Robots help carry the items which humans place in them to a shipping area, and from there shipping labels are placed by staff on boxes and loaded into trucks.

However, when the power is cut off, their operation is forced to stop as well. And, in an era of companies like Amazon offering their customers two day shipping, down time doesn’t work well with business.

“It is very costly for us, as a business,” Anderson said. “We have to be right on the same vein as they are, and if we are not our customers will complain and they can go elsewhere to somebody else who isn’t effected by the power problems we are having.”

Both Anderson and Burlingame said they want Xcel to bury power lines so they aren’t vulnerable during wind events. However, they also suggested that Xcel pay for generators for their companies. A generator for a facility the size of AFW could cost up to $250,000.

In a statement issued to CBS News Colorado, Xcel Energy said they sympathize with companies impacted by the shutoffs.

“Xcel Energy understands the significant impacts Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) have had on residents and businesses as we work to keep our communities safe, while navigating unprecedented weather conditions this season. We know being without power is disruptive, and we take the decision to implement a PSPS very seriously.

Public Safety Power Shutoffs are a vital tool for protecting our communities during periods of high wildfire risk. Historically low snowpack, unseasonably warm temperatures, high winds and extremely dry ground conditions all contributed to this PSPS. We communicated with our customers several days in advance to help them prepare.

Outages – planned and unplanned – impact sections of the grid depending on the design of the system. The grid is vast and interconnected, and the power lines serving a given area may travel through areas exposed to more extreme weather conditions and higher levels of wildfire risk, which is why neighboring streets could be impacted differently.

Customers impacted by a PSPS can file a claim with their insurance company. If needed, customers can call our Xcel Energy Customer Care team and request a letter confirming they were part of a PSPS or a weather-related outage to support their claim. 

In regards to undergrounding, our 2025-2027 Wildfire Mitigation Plan has approximately 25.7 miles slated to be moved underground in 2026, with a targeted total of 50 miles.

The cost of this year’s work is estimated to be approximately $3.12 million per mile. Targeted Underground Projects (TUG) are typically determined through analyzing wildfire risk, potential spread and environmental impacts. Another tool we utilize to try and limit the need for a PSPS are our Enhanced Powerline Safety Settings (EPSS), which allow power lines to remain in service during periods of high wildfire risk, with additional protection settings enabled to enhance public safety.  

We know our customers rely on us to provide an essential service, and we take that responsibility seriously. Xcel Energy is always evaluating ways to improve the service we deliver. As extremely dry and unseasonably warm conditions persist, we urge customers to take steps toward Wildfire Preparedness .”

Those with the Fort Collins business park said they plan to meet with Xcel about their grievances in a meeting in early March.  

“I understand that and sympathize, fire mitigation is very important. But, these heavy-handed ways they are handling it is impacting all of our businesses,” Burlingame said.