SISTERS (AP) - A growing power problem in this Western-themed city has led officials to consider halting development until additional capacity can be added to the system.

Central Electric Cooperative's primary transmission line along Highway 126 has proven inadequate to handle the city's growth, and a recent letter from Central Electric Cooperative's president and CEO Al Gonzalez to City Manager Eileen Stein indicates the problem has reached a peak.

“If the city of Sisters desires to be without any risk of periodic blackout situations occurring during extreme cold weather, they need to notify us and that would be a factor we would contemplate in issuing a moratorium,” Gonzalez wrote.

The Sisters City Council discussed the situation last week, expressing dismay with how the cooperative has handled the area's growth.

Councilman Brad Boyd said the most perplexing aspect of the power supply problem is that Central Electric Cooperative has continued to issue “will-serve letters” for new developments in Sisters, meaning the cooperative is promising it can deliver the power.

However, the cooperative's attorney, Martin Hansen, said the letters only mean that power will be provided if it is available.

As of Feb. 2, the cooperative had issued will-serve letters for the future construction of more than 800 new residential dwellings and commercial buildings in Sisters, some of which will be completed in the coming year, according to city records obtained by The Bulletin newspaper of Bend.

“It's like you are just watching the train crash coming in slow motion,” Boyd said. “They are asking us to have a moratorium because they haven't done their job.”

The power problem could be solved if an upgrade on a secondary power line is completed by next winter, said Jim Crowell, member services director for the utility.

The project is delayed because the steel poles needed to upgrade the line will not be in hand until sometime this summer, Crowell said.

If the line is not completed by winter, residents could face rolling blackouts when the temperatures dip.