Gravel pit promises compliance

At Monday’s meeting members of the planning commission approved a conditional use permit for a gravel pit about a half mile outside the city limits along County Rd. 113.

The owner of the pit, Fred Neal plans to allow a contractor to work out of the pit to supply gravel for U.S. defense missile road contracts.

“I want to be a good neighbor,” Neal said. “My land essentially surrounds that and I don’t want to have any issues. I don’t want to have dust. I don’t want to have all the negatives that tend to come with a gravel pit if not controlled.”

He promised that the contractor will run a conscientious operation. Members of the planning commission were cautious about allowing a new gravel pit just outside the city, because of the many issues the city experienced with out-of-compliance pits in the past.

“I also think there’s an opportunity for a well-run, well-controlled gravel pit in the community, particularly with all the building that’s going on,” Neal said. “But again I’m going to control it very stringently.”

The city granted Neal a conditional use permit to operate a gravel pit on the property for 18 months or two construction seasons with a $1,000 per month road fee to be passed on to the county. The road fee will be reviewed in three months, by which time the contractor should have an agreement with the county for road maintenance. The planning commission also asked that city personnel inspect the gravel pit on a regular basis.

Turf Irrigation also planned to apply for a conditional use permit for a gravel pit at Monday’s meeting. The company intended to provide gravel to the county from the proposed pit, just north of the city on County Rd. 115 at a lower price that what’s currently available in that area. Shortly before the meeting, the company withdrew the permit application because it did not yet own the property in question.