HomeMy WebLinkAbout20200645.tiffHEARING CERTIFICATION
DOCKET NO. 2020-11
RE: A SITE SPECIFIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN AND USE BY SPECIAL REVIEW PERMIT,
USR19-0071, FOR OPEN MINING (SAND, GRAVEL AND STONE) AND PROCESSING
OF MINERALS, INCLUDING RECYCLE OPERATIONS FOR CONCRETE AND
ASPHALT. ALSO INCLUDED IS A MINE OFFICE, SCALE HOUSE AND SCALE, A
FUELING/LUBRICATING STATION, PORTABLE GENERATORS, MOBILE MINING
EQUIPMENT PARKING AND STORAGE, AND EMPLOYEE AND VENDOR PARKING IN
THE A (AGRICULTURAL) ZONE DISTRICT - DPG FARMS, LLC, AND CALVEN GOZA
A public hearing was conducted on February 26, 2020, at 10:00 a.m., with the following present:
Commissioner Mike Freeman, Chair
Commissioner Steve Moreno, Pro -Tern
Commissioner Scott K. James — EXCUSED
Commissioner Barbara Kirkmeyer
Commissioner Kevin D. Ross
Also present:
Acting Clerk to the Board, Jess Reid
Assistant County Attorney, Bob Choate
Planning Services Department representative, Kim Ogle
Public Works Department representative, Mike McRoberts
Health Department representative, Lauren Light
The following business was transacted:
'e---- I hereby certify that pursuant to a notice dated January 13, 2020, and duly published
January 17, 2020, in the Greeley Tribune, a public hearing was conducted to consider the request
of DPG Farms, LLC, and Calven Goza, for a Site Specific Development Plan and Use by Special
Review Permit, USR19-0071, for open mining (sand, gravel and stone) and processing of
minerals, including recycle operations for concrete and asphalt. Also included is a mine office,
scale house and scale, a fueling/lubricating station, portable generators, mobile mining equipment
parking and storage, and employee and vendor parking in the A (Agricultural) Zone District. Bob
Choate, Assistant County Attorney, made this a matter of record.
Kim Ogle, Department of Planning Services, presented a brief summary of the proposal,
provided the general location of the site, and stated the site is within the three (3) mile referral
area of the Town of Kersey and the City of Greeley, and the Intergovernmental Agreement
Area (IGA) of the Town of Kersey. He discussed the site with regard to the 2016 Kersey
Comprehensive Plan and the 2018 City of Greeley Comprehensive Plan and reviewed the joint
referral from the Town of Kersey, and Cities of Greeley and Evans. He explained that in 2019, the
three (3) municipalities adopted an IGA related to land use in areas of shared interest and stated
the agreement is specific to land use, growth boundaries, and future annexations between the
three (3) municipalities. He further explained the referral identified several land use plans for the
area of the site, and outlined the request for the applicant to discuss preservation of open space
with the Town of Kersey and the City of Greeley staff. He indicated the applicant, applicant's
representative, and the landowner met with the City of Greeley and the Town of Kersey to discuss
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the referral, specifically the stewardship of the land, future uses, such as water storage, the
potential to extend the Poudre River trail, and a conservation easement after mining and
reclamation of the land.
Mr. Ogle reviewed the application details, including the Reclamation Plan, and referenced
the map to show the undisturbed land and the proposed mining site. He described adjacent lands
and surrounding uses, indicated the nearest residence is approximately 50 feet to the south of
Holly Avenue, and is occupied by the landowner. He indicated, if the structure is used as part of
the company operations, a Change of Use permit will be required through the Department of
Building Inspection. He stated Planning staff sent letters to 17 surrounding property owners (SPO)
and they received one (1) phone call inquiring about the application and one (1) letter with
concerns about traffic at the intersection of Holly Avenue and County Road 49 Parkway (CR 49).
Mr. Ogle described the location of the batch plant, if utilized for the facility, and mentioned the
applicant held a community meeting on January 27, 2020, and seven (7) SPOs attended. He
reviewed the Plans required in the Conditions of Approval (COA), provided mining permit number
M2019-028, under which they will be operating, outlined the details of the operation, and provided
the number of employees and the hours of operation. He explained the mining will be done in
phases, provided the time frame of each phase, and indicated reclamation will occur as each
phase is completed. He stated the primary end Use, post mining, is the development of four (4)
water storage reservoirs and noted adjacent lands will continue being leased for seasonal sports
hunting. He confirmed permit M2019-028, dated October 3, 2019, was obtained from the State of
Colorado Division of Reclamation Mining and Safety (DRMS), stated the Department of Planning
Services sent out 27 referrals, received ten (10) responses, and he entered the favorable
recommendation of the Planning Commission into the record as written.
Mike McRoberts, Department of Public Works (PW), provided a brief overview of the
transportation plans and requirements, stated access is on Holly Avenue and the applicant is
proposing the access tie into Holly Avenue at the beginning of a horizontal curve. However, due
to concerns with access on horizontal curves PW is requiring the applicant to construct a
"T" intersection to replace the horizontal curve section of Holly Avenue. He indicated no traffic
counts are available for Holly Avenue and provided traffic counts and average speeds for CR 49,
north and south of Holly Avenue. He explained the traffic associated with the proposed site,
indicated all traffic will use CR 49 to access Holly Avenue, and stated PW is requiring tracking
control and an Improvements and Road Maintenance Agreement. He noted the site meets an
exception to detention and outlined the grading requirements. In response to
Commissioner Kirkmeyer, Mr. Ogle repeated the daily round trips and clarified the roadways the
numbers are associated with.
Lauren Light, Department of Public Health and Environment, reviewed the water and sewer
provisions and stated the shop near the Goza residence is served by an individual, domestic well
and a septic system sized for three (3) bedrooms that also serves the residence. She explained
the well will have to be re -permitted to commercial and the septic system will have to be reviewed
for sizing by a registered engineer. She indicated portable toilets are acceptable during the
working phase of the mine, outlined dust control measures, and noted the applicant will need an
Air Pollution Emissions Notice (APEN) permit from the Colorado Department of Public Health and
Environment (CDPHE). She stated there will be on -site maintenance and fuel storage, which will
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also require a permit from the CDPHE, noise is restricted to the industrial level, and Development
Standards (DS) #19-36 address Environmental Health items.
J.C. York, J and T Consulting Inc., represented the applicant and shared a PowerPoint
presentation (Exhibit E) which included a mining phase and site plan map. He displayed images
of the access location, described the equipment associated with the operation, indicated
reclamation will occur as mining is done, and provided details about the reclaimed water
reservoirs. He discussed the roadway and traffic to the site and stated the Traffic Study indicated
no additional lanes are needed. He displayed the Site Distance Analysis and in response to
Commissioner Kirkmeyer, he explained the displayed map, confirmed the Traffic Study did take
the speed on CR 49 into consideration, and indicated the average speed reported in the Traffic
Study differs from the County's speed data. Mr. McRoberts stated the County's data is from
August 2017, and Mr. York explained how the speed information was obtained for the Traffic
Study.
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Mr. York described the plan to keep the weeds mowed to help with turning site distance and
in response to Commissioner Kirkmeyer, he showed on the displayed map the distance between
Holly Avenue and CR 60.5, and Mr. McRoberts indicated it was approximately 5,300 feet.
Mr. York described additional site distance information and provided details of the noise analysis.
le Jeff Kwolkoski, Acoustical Engineer at Wave Engineering, explained the technology used to
calculate sound levels and indicated he used existing gravel pit operations to gauge noise from
the equipment and the haul trucks on the property. He reviewed the different scenarios that were
analyzed, provided the permissible noise levels for Industrial and Residential Zones and displayed
images with the sound measurements he obtained.
IR Mr. York provided details of the Lighting Plan, Dust Control Plan, groundwater impacts and
displayed a well monitor location map. He indicated no wetlands or endangered species will be
impacted and reiterated they will need to obtain an APEN from the CDPHE. In response to
Commissioner Kirkmeyer, he explained the site is in a floodplain and the aggregate stockpiles will
screen the plant and trees will screen the scale house. He described the location of the existing
trees, showed the location of the scale house in relation to residential properties and confirmed
there is no natural screening between the scale house and the residential property to the south.
He stated he was not aware of the requirements of the Cache La Poudre (CLP) Irrigating
Company and mentioned they had been working with the Delta Irrigation Company on crossing
agreements. He reiterated seven (7) landowners were present at the community meeting, and
the concerns discussed were site distance and traffic at the intersection. He explained the details
of the Communication Plan and indicated the letters of communication would be sent via certified
mail. He explained SUP -425 was a permit for the previous gravel mine in the area, indicated they
had no plans for nighttime operations, and stated in the case it became necessary to operate at
night they would seek the Board's approval at that time. In response to Commissioner Moreno,
he stated the Goza residence will be used as the on -site office and confirmed the hours of
operation.
Christian Morgan, Kersey Town Manager, explained the IGA between the Town of Kersey
and the Cities of Greeley and Evans and stated they developed a shared approach to identify the
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uses and wants for the area of the proposed site. He stated the activities currently in the area
include mining, agriculture, hunting, confluence for the Poudre and Platte Rivers, and agritourism.
He questioned if there was a fence proposed along CR 49 and expressed concerns with traffic,
including the average speed, the lack of acceleration/deceleration lanes where the trucks would
be entering, and requested a traffic study be completed every five (5) years and provided to the
Town of Kersey and Cities of Greeley and Evans. He stated another concern was the possibility
of a batch plant; thus, he requested it be considered separately from the mining operation, and
lastly, requested reclamation be done in phases. In response to Commissioner Kirkmeyer,
Mr. Morgan described the history of the IGA committee and explained there was no intent to
exclude Weld County, but that the three (3) municipalities wanted to ensure they had resolved
several underlying issues first. In response, Commissioner Kirkmeyer conveyed her
disappointment of Weld County not being included, given the fact the County has included the
Town of Kersey and Cities of Greeley and Evans in many discussions regarding this area.
Justin Scharton, City of Greeley Natural Areas and Trails Division, provided the history of
the division and stated it is led by numerous "council adopted" Plans including the City's 2016
Parks Trails and Open Lands Master Plan, the 2018 Imagine Greeley Comprehensive Plan, the
Poudre River/South Platte River Master Plan, and the CLP Greenway Guide. He explained the
confluence area near the proposed site is important from an outdoor recreational, trail corridor,
and conservation/ecological standpoint. He thanked the applicant for avoiding the riparian
corridor, for agreeing to full cut-off, exterior lighting, and for being open to future river restoration
opportunities. He stated the landowner and the applicant did not agree to trail access on the
proposed site and indicated the Natural Areas and Trails Division would like to partner with the
County and private property landowners to preserve agriculture, help facilitate outdoor recreation,
to look for access opportunities for hunting/fishing/trails, and to participate in future river
restoration. In response to Commissioner Kirkmeyer's question about the County not being
included in the IGA committee, Mr. Scharton stated those conversations took place prior to his
employment, so he deferred to the Director of Community Development, and added they will likely
be going through a master planning process in the near future and the County will be a strong
partner when that occurs.
El Brad Mueller, Director of Community Development for the City of Greeley, reiterated the
importance of the area, stated they would like to be a resource for the applicant, and emphasized
the opportunity for coordination among the municipalities. In response to Commissioner
Kirkmeyer's previous question, Mr. Mueller explained the County has always encouraged the
towns and cities to work together and stated the three (3) municipalities wanted to have a common
understanding between them and then include the County on "phase two (2)" of the discussions.
He reviewed the City's history of working with the County on previous master plans and
referenced two (2) joint planning efforts. Commissioner Kirkmeyer stated she has worked to get
Coordinated Planning Agreements (CPA) with multiple municipalities and mentioned she reached
out to the mayors of the City of Greeley and the Town of Eaton about an Access Control Plan on
CR 49, which was rejected by the previous mayor of the City of Greeley. In response to
Commissioner Kirkmeyer, Mr. Mueller stated all comments in the referral had been addressed
and acknowledged the stance of the previous City of Greeley Mayor when asked to participate in
the CR 49 Access Control Plan.
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Mr. York explained the proposed site is on a legacy property, it will continue to be owned by
the Goza family, and they have chosen to allow the mining operation on the property.
Chair Freeman acknowledged the importance of agriculture in Weld County, but also recognized
the landowner's right to extract minerals. In response to Commissioner Moreno, Mr. York
confirmed they will use the existing barbed-wire fence surrounding the property and in response
to Commissioner Kirkmeyer, Mr. York outlined the requirements of the Colorado Division of Water
Resources in COA #1.A. Commissioner Kirkmeyer suggested deleting COA #1.B (requirements
of the New Cache La Poudre Irrigating Company), as the ditch is located within the USR boundary
but will not be impacted by the mining, COA #1.C (requirements of the joint referral from the City
of Greeley, City of Evans, and Town of Kersey), as all comments have been addressed, and
COA #1.E (Lighting Plan), as specific lighting requirements will be outlined in DS #40. In response
to Commissioner Kirkmeyer, Mr. York indicated there will be some outdoor storage and she asked
staff to work on language for COA #1.F (Screening Plan) and #1.L.5 (map shall delineate
screening). There was discussion about COA #1.G (Improvements and Road Maintenance
Agreement) and Mr. McRoberts outlined the details of the agreement specific to Holly Avenue.
Commissioner Kirkmeyer expressed her primary concern is the safety of the traveling public and
the County's investment in CR 49 and stated the applicant should install acceleration/deceleration
lanes on CR 49. In response to Chair Freeman, Mr. McRoberts stated PW uses the Highway
Access Code to determine triggered improvements and indicated PW can request the applicant's
traffic engineer use the County's 2017 speed data to calculate triggered improvements.
Mr. Choate clarified Commissioner Kirkmeyer's request for the language in COA #1.G and the
Improvements and Road Maintenance Agreement. In response to Chair Freeman, Mr. McRoberts
confirmed the next County assessed traffic count for CR 49 will commence soon, and
Commissioner Ross stated he would like to hear details of the Traffic Study completed by the
applicant.
Joe Henderson, Sustainable Traffic Solutions, provided details of the traffic study and stated
the speed collected was 54 miles per hour. He clarified the need for acceleration/deceleration
lanes is based on Weld County criteria, not Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT)
criteria, provided the predictions of the vehicles accessing the facility, and explained there is no
place to put a left turn acceleration lane to go south bound, due to a north bound left turn
acceleration lane to turn onto 18th Street. He provided the specifics for the Holly Avenue
intersection and stated site distance is based on the speed limit and the American Association of
State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) criteria, using the speed of 55 miles per
hour, and affirmed he was confident of the site distance even at 65 miles per hour.
Commissioner Moreno agreed with Commissioner Kirkmeyer's previous comments on
safety, Commissioner Ross agreed with the comments about safety, but expressed concern the
Board was contradicting Code criteria by requiring the applicant to construct
acceleration/deceleration lanes, and Chair Freeman echoed Commissioner Ross' concern. In
response to Commissioner Kirkmeyer, Mr. McRoberts stated he would have to research how
many feet it takes a haul truck, going 55 miles per hour, to slow down to make a right-hand turn
and how many feet it takes for said truck to get up to 55 miles per hour after making a right-hand
turn onto CR 49. Commissioner Freeman explained CR 49 is a four (4) lane road so there is an
opportunity for traffic to move around the trucks in the passing lane, and stated if the Code, traffic
studies, and traffic modeling show the triggers are met, then the acceleration/deceleration lanes
should be required. In response to Commissioner Ross, Mr. McRoberts stated the distance,
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driving northbound between the western end of the bridge and the access on Holly Avenue, is
approximately 1,272 feet.
Elizabeth Relford, Department of Public Works, explained the existing intersection design at
Holly Avenue and CR 49, stated she needed to review the Traffic Study, and confirmed the posted
speed limit in the area is 55 miles per hour. There was discussion about the existing turn lanes at
the intersection and Chair Freeman recommended the Board leave the language in COA #1.G as
is, and have PW present the Improvements and Road Maintenance Agreement to the Board for
approval once completed. Commissioner Kirkmeyer proposed additional language be added to
COA #1.G to ensure traffic is not impeded, to preserve the functional integrity, and to protect the
investment of CR 49. Chair Freeman suggested the Board direct staff to affirm the aforementioned
concerns are addressed in the Improvements and Road Maintenance Agreement,
Commissioner Kirkmeyer reiterated to Ms. Relford her concerns she would like addressed in the
Improvements and Road Maintenance Agreement, and the Board agreed.
Chair Freeman recessed the hearing for a five (5) minute break.
• Chair Freeman reconvened the meeting, and Commissioner Kirkmeyer revisited COA #1.L.5
and staff suggested it read, "The map shall delineate the natural material stockpiles or trees used
for screening, in accordance with the approved Screening Plan." Chris Leone, J2 Contracting,
stated the scale house is in a floodplain and Mr. Choate suggested removing "site"from COA #1.F
and adding "scale house and outdoor storage areas" to specify what needs to be screened.
Commissioner Kirkmeyer suggested deleting "public or private emergency" and "or repair
facilities" from DS #3 (operation during nighttime hours), changing DS #40 (nighttime lighting) to
read, "Nighttime lighting shall be oriented 90 degrees to the ground plane", and there was
discussion about DS #24 (permissible noise level). In response to Commissioner Ross, Mr. Ogle
stated DS #39 (discovery of human remains) was a standard note for a gravel mining application
and Chair Freeman suggested deleting it, as the applicant has to follow the law regardless of
the DS. Per Mr. Ogle's request, the Board agreed to add a new DS #4 specifying when and why
the facility would be able to operate at night, as well as all the aforementioned changes.
• In response to Chair Freeman, the applicant indicated he had reviewed, and agreed to abide
by, the Conditions of Approval and Development Standards, as amended.
• No public testimony was offered regarding changes made to the Conditions of Approval and
Development Standards.
• Commissioner Moreno moved to approve the request of DPG Farms, LLC, and Calven Goza,
for a Site Specific Development Plan and Use by Special Review Permit, USR19-0071, for open
mining (sand, gravel and stone) and processing of minerals, including recycle operations for
concrete and asphalt. Also included is a mine office, scale house and scale, a fueling/lubricating
station, portable generators, mobile mining equipment parking and storage, and employee and
vendor parking in the A (Agricultural) Zone District, based on the recommendations of Planning
staff and the Planning Commission, with the Conditions of Approval and Development Standards,
as amended. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Ross, and it carried unanimously.
There being no further discussion, the hearing was completed at 12:19 p.m.
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This Certification was approved on the 2nd day of March, 2020.
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
WELD COUNTY, COLORADO
ATTEST:�a�1J vClo•ok.
Weld County Clerk to the Board
eputy Clerk to the Board
Mike reeman, Chair
D DATE OF APPROVAL
Steve Moreno, Pro -Tern
EXCUSED
Sco , K
USED DATE F APPR VAL
arbara Kirkme er
Kevin D. Ross
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