No more gravel pits.
That was the message Erda and Lake Point residents sent to the Tooele County Planning Commission on Wednesday night.
After hearing from the public, the planning commission voted unanimously to recommend that the Tooele County Commission deny a request to rezone 36-acres off of Droubay Road at approximately 6900 North from MU-40 and A-20 to MG-EX.
Michael Carlson, the owner of the property, requested the rezone so the property could be used for gravel extraction, according to Scott Parker, agent for Carlson.
Parker explained that plans for the property would not include a traditional gravel pit.
“We’re only talking about a dozer, loader and a truck,” he said. “There would be no crushing.”
The process would be non-invasive, involve only rocks smaller than four inches, only last a couple years, and daily truck trips would vary from none on some days to no more than 12 to 15 per day, Parker said. Some days there would only be two or three, he added.
If the rezone request is turned down, Parker said he would apply for a mass-grading permit for the property and scrape the surface off, he said.
Local residents, upset by high traffic, noise, dust and the alleged degradation of Bates Canyon Road by heavy trucks running to and from existing gravel operations on the north end of Droubay Road, weren’t buying Parker’s claims.
“It’s going to continue,” said Chris Prisbrey of Lake Point. “It’s going to expand. We will get the negative things, but those of us in Lake Point will not get the positive.”
Bates Canyon resident Randy Salt laid broken pieces of asphalt from Bates Canyon Road on the table in front of the planning commission.
“Those pieces are there in front of you because of a decision that planning and zoning made to approve a gravel pit up above the railroad tracks,” Salt said. “I would strongly, strongly encourage each of you to deny the rezone of this property.”
Anna Marie Vail, who lives on Bates Canyon Road, said she has counted as many as 17 gravel trucks in a 15-minute period on Bates Canyon Road.
“I’m appalled,” she said. “I don’t want more trucks running down Bates Canyon Road rumbling our house day and night. You have turned our roads into semi-truck highways.”
Marylinn Sharp of Lake Point, said she and her neighbors are tired of people trying to change Lake Point.
“We are tired of having the zoning changed for wealthy people, people that own a lot that want the zoning changed,” she said. “We want it to remain rural residential one-acre lots with animal rights. We have really been cheated out of that time-and-time again and I want to see it stopped.”
Planning commission member John Wright made a motion that the planning commission recommend to the county commission that the rezone request be denied.
Wright said he based his motion on the fact that the rezone request was not in harmony with the general plan, the property is adjacent to existing homes and planned residential neighborhoods, the property has not been used for gravel extraction for over 20 years, and the owner may develop his property under current zoning.
The planning commission unanimously approved Wright’s motion.
The Tooele County Commission will vote on the proposed zone change at a future meeting.
