I could be wrong but, I believe that this work could "legally" be performed but according to NFPA 70E all of the required personal protective equipment would have to be worn by anyone working within a certain distance of the live parts and it would be "Permit Required" work. Which means, the city would have to sign a form stating why the work would have to be preformed live and usually loss of proffits is not a consideration.
By the city signing this form, most, but not all, of the liability would be shifted to the city. Avoid doing the work live if at all possible. Do not under any circumstances do the work live if the city will not sign off on the permit. If the work is done live you will need an engineer to calculate the energy of the possible arc blast to choose the proper personal protective equipment.
Safety First. Remember, we all want to make money but if we can't go home to our families at night or if we are permanately injured no amount of money will matter.
Good luck.
