Hours of operation limited for Timberline gravel pit

By Dan MacArthur
North Forty News

Neighbors would get a little more quiet time and Aggregate Industries would get its gravel pit in a compromise endorsed by the Larimer County Planning Commission.

The commission on July 20 recommended that the county commissioners approve the special review required to establish the new Timberline pit between Overland Trail and Taft Hill Road north of LaPorte.

But as a condition of that approval - over Aggregate's objections - the commission called for reduced hours of operation to give neighbors more tranquil mornings, evenings and weekends.

The commission recommended that actual mine operations be limited to 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, although equipment would be allowed to run for a half hour at either end of those deadlines. Aggregate had requested operating hours of 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays and 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays.

Other conditions of approval included investigating the use of electric rather than diesel-operated dewatering pumps to further reduce noise, pursuing the possibility of adding acceleration lanes for haul trucks turning onto westbound Highway 287, and developing an actively monitored complaint reporting system.

Aggregate's plans have undergone dramatic revision since they were first submitted in 2002. It then proposed mining 212 acres of the 295-acre site in addition to operating an asphalt and concrete batch plant. Residents expressed concerns about dust, noise, operation hours, groundwater, wetlands and especially truck access to the site from Overland Trail.

The asphalt and concrete batch plants have been deleted from the current plan, which calls for mining sand and gravel from 78 acres. Access now would be entirely from Highway 287, and the haul road to the highway would be paved to reduce dust. The estimated 3.5 million tons of material would be removed in phases over seven to 10 years with operations commencing when supplies from the nearby Stegner pit on Taft Hill Road and County Road 54G are exhausted.

"Aggregate has made a concerted effort to change these things," said company consultant Barb Brunk. "We've really tried to consider neighbors."

While Aggregate's efforts did win general praise, they still fell short of eliminating persistent doubts based on what residents said was the company's failure to meet promised operational standards on the Stegner pit.

"You can tell a lot about what they'll do by what they've done in the past," said Bill Seaworth, whose property borders the Stegner pit. He said Aggregate has failed to install the drain it promised, or even to deal with tumbleweeds that have literally broken down a gate.

While he was not opposed to the proposal for a new pit, Seaworth said, "Unfortunately Aggregate Industries is not the one to do it right."

"They really have not delivered on anything they promised us," concurred Stegner neighbor Bill Friehauf.

Chief Planner Rob Helmick conceded that it can be difficult enforcing conditions in a special use. But he said the permit could be revoked and the operation shut down if it can be documented that the conditions are consistently violated.