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HomeMy WebLinkAbout871726.tiff ASSOCIATED VETERINARIANS P. C. 1901 1ST AVE. GREELEY, COLD. 80631 PHONE 352-8951 ray 29 , 2987 To whom it nay concern: I am writing this note in regards to the proposed sheep feedlot close to El-Du Dairy. Lost of my concerns deal with the impact of the sheep originationg from several localities and the health and saleability of the registered dairy cattle -at • El-Du. One disease that can be transmitted between cattle and sheep is bluetongue. The virus causing this disease is carried by the Culicoides gnat. This virus could potentially be transmitted to the cattle. Often this does not cause severe disease in cattle but on blood tests the cattle will show a positive titer to bluetongue. This is significant in a registered herd that sells cattle inter- state and internationally as this nay stop the sale of the cattle. Also, a disease called ?laliguant Cattarral Fever has been incriminated to some extent in sheep and cattle being in very close proximity. My last concern is the potential dust created by this many sheep in the summer time and the effect this nay have on resp- iratory disease, especially in the calves . rEXHIBIT . l a- I 870421 1 I S:ay _4 19r7 Page 2 I hope you will give these concerns your sincere consideration in your decision. Respectfully, "O,22 "elara4/46/ Ron G. Maifeld DVM Associated Veterinarians, P .C. 870421 May 13, 1987 Weld County Planning Commission 915 10th Street Greeley, CO Attn: Lanell J. Swanson Dear Commission Members: As President and spokesperson for the Zeiler Farms Inc. , a small family corporation consisting of the immediate family of Henry Zeiler (deceased) , and namely, Alma McKee, Richard Zeiler, Ken Zeiler, Ron Zeiler, and Kathleen Weinmeister, I request that Gary Bragdon' s petition to establish a 20, 000 head livestock (lamb) feeding operation (one and three-quarters miles East of the Larimer/Weld" County line and one -eighth of a mile North of HWY 34 ; docket# 8719) be denied. The Zeiler Farm operation, an approximate 640 acres adjacent parcel, is strictly a farming operation at this time. It is supervised by Lloyd and Randy Schwalm and their immediate family who live on the 160 acres directly West and adjacent to the proposed Bragdon operation. Because of the short notification time in announcing your meeting and the fact that our corporate members live in California, Texas, and Arizona, we were unable to circulate a petition which contained all the owners' and the operators' signatures. However, I was able to notify each individual and what follows is our collective objection to the establishment of the proposed Bragdon feedlot and grazing operation. Each person I represent has spent, at least, eighteen years living adjacent to the land Gary Bragdon wants to use for his lamb feedlot operation. Each corporate member has previously been involved in a dairy, grazing hundreds of head of sheep, feeding hogs and cattle and raising horses. Each of us have first hand experience with grazing and caring for sheep. Even with an economic appreciation for what Gary Bragdon hopes to achieve, we still strongly object to the proposed operation based on the potential for stray animals, the perceived decrease in the value of our land for developing residential sites because of its close proximity to a feedlot, the anticipated and uncontrollable odor and noise, the visual impact from both the ground and air observation, the dust and potential erosion of soils, and the potential for disease and parasites that may affect animals and pets on adjacent properties. We collectively believe that without a chain link fence on the North, West and South side of Gary' s land, neighbors and, more importantly, motorists on HWY 34 will be plagued with stray lambs wandering onto and across adjacent properties. At dusk and during evening hours, stray animals could cause loss of lives and property if they wander onto HWY 34 . 870421 , " Noone can reasonably dispute that a lamb feedlot adjacent to a potential residential development site can erase any hope of developing such a site. The decrease in the value of land for residential purposes if such a facility were approved is substantial. There currently exists a cluster of residential houses one statue mile West of the proposed Bragdon property. We believe our land has the potential to be a development site. We have documentation to substantiate our claim. Zeiler Farms has both a commercial and small residential plat on land adjacent to the Larimer-Weld County line. For us, unreasonable property devaluation will be experienced if the Bragdon operation receives approval. Zeiler family members are also concerned about animal diseases and parasites being spread to adjacent properties. Finally, the visual appearance, odor, dust and noise created by the high density of sheep on the Bragdon property are unacceptable to us. What we, as individuals and as a corporation have to lose; far exceeds any benefit to the community in jobs or other economic factors. Therefore, we urge the planning commission to recommend disapproval of the Bragdon lamb feeding and grazing operation. Individually, the shareholders of Zeiler Farms would be glad to provide separate letters requesting disapproval. We ask that the commission weighs our concerns and, hopefully, determines that this type of operation belongs in a remote and isolated location. eSinc ely, �� - -����r �, � athleen -Weinmeister President, Zeiler Farms ILtai 1(91-ez-Y Alma McKee Secretary/Treasurer, Zeiler Farms ' i Board of Directors Member, Zeiler Farms 870421 Hello