Walworth County has final say on proposal rejected by Town Board
By Jason Arndt
Editor
The battle over a proposed gravel pit in the Town of Spring Prairie is not over even after the Town Board unanimously rejected the plan proposed by Asphalt Contractors Inc. at Feb. 10 meeting.
Asphalt Contractors, of Union Grove, asked to rezone three parcels from A-1 Agriculture to M-3 Mineral Extraction District, obtain conditional use permits for each to allow operation of a gravel pit and consolidate the three parcels into one.
“The issue now passes on to Walworth County which is scheduled to take it up at its Feb. 20 County Zoning Agency meeting,” the Spring Prairie website states.
The County Zoning Agency meeting will commence at 5:30 p.m. in Elkhorn and also consider a non-metallic mining reclamation permit, according to the agenda, which indicates the targeted land encompasses nearly 112 acres.
The agenda also indicates Asphalt Contractors plans to use the proposed site owned by Donald Frederick, of WSPR Enterprises, LLC, for sand and gravel extraction as well as wash plant operations.
Frederick, a member of the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission, recused himself from the voting on the matter, which saw a 3-2 decision in favor of two of three proposals on Jan. 16.
Representatives from Asphalt Contractors said in a previous meeting the land covers about 111 acres and is a quarter of a mile from Highway 120 and a quarter of a mile off Highway 11 and Hargraves Road.
Asphalt Contractors President Robert Kordus, who indicated at a previous meeting the plan did not involve plant operations, will also seek a nonmetallic mining reclamation permit.
“The Walworth County Land Conservation Division has determined the reclamation plan is complete and complies with the Walworth County Nonmetallic Mining Reclamation Ordinance, contained in Chapter 26, Article VI of the Walworth County Code of Ordinances,” the agenda states.
“The Walworth County Land Conservation Division will consider reclamation-related public comments in their decision to approve the reclamation.”
Town set to oppose
Meanwhile, according to town officials, the Town of Spring Prairie planned to draft a resolution opposing the proposed gravel pit at a special meeting a day earlier.
The resolution cites many factors, including updates to its comprehensive plan, the Walworth County Farmland Preservation Plan Update, increased costs for maintenance of town roads because of increased traffic caused by more trucks from the proposed site, as well as the Feb. 10 Town Board decision.
“The Town of Spring Prairie amended the town comprehensive plan to update land uses on farmland preservation areas and other changes that have occurred and to extend the design year of the plan to year 2050, as set forth in a Multi-Jurisdictional Comprehensive Plan Update for Walworth County Amendment,” the resolution states.
“The Walworth County Farmland Preservation Plan Update reaffirms the county’s long-range commitment to preserving farmlands and working farms in the county and cites the preservation and protection of the most productive agricultural soils as the primary land use goal for Walworth County.”
As for traffic, the conditional use permit application calls for 100 trucks entering and leaving the proposed site, which comes to a total of 200 trips per day.
The traffic congestion, according to the resolution, could cause hardship on town roads and increase maintenance expenses.
Mark Krumenacher, senior vice president of GZA Environmental, which Asphalt Contractors retained to compile documents, contends the proposed gravel pit will not negatively affect the Town of Spring Prairie.
To read the entire story see the Feb. 20 edition of the Burlington Standard Press.
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