Spring Prairie Chairman says board will have final say
By Jason Arndt
Editor
The Spring Prairie Town Board will have final consideration of a proposed gravel pit after the Planning and Zoning Commission recommended approval Jan. 16, according to Chairman Thomas C. Bolfert.
Bolfert, in a letter to constituents dated Jan. 20, said the matter could come to a close at a Feb. 10 Town Board meeting with specific procedures in place.
“The issue of the gravel pit will now be taken up by the Town Board for a vote at its Feb. 10 meeting,” he wrote. “Bear in the mind that the vote from the Planning Commission is an advisory recommendation and is not binding on the board.”
The highly controversial and contentious proposal, which saw fierce opposition from residents, will not include additional comments from either applicant Asphalt Contractors, Inc. or citizens at the Feb. 10 meeting.
Bolfert cited recent meetings, which included more than an hour of debate on Jan. 16, as well as hundreds of pages worth of supporting documents from both sides as the reason.
“The majority of the board members have attended all the meetings regarding the proposed gravel pit and have both read all the materials provided and have heard all the arguments on both sides of the issue,” he said. “There will be neither presentations by Asphalt Contractors nor comments by residents allowed. The issue will be solely discussed by Town Board members.”
At the Feb. 10 Town Board meeting, supervisors will also consider a non-metallic mining ordinance laying out the rules and requirements for future mining proposals in the Town of Spring Prairie.
The ordinance, according to Bolfert, does not affect the proposal presented by Asphalt Contractors.
“While many in town would like to see an ordinance totally banning any future mines, it simply is not allowable under state law,” he wrote, adding the proposed ordinance will allow the Town Board to have more authority in future decisions.
“This new ordinance puts more power in the hands of the Town Board to determine if a proposed mining operation is in the best interests of the town,” he wrote.
Best interests include health, safety and welfare as well as concerns related to environment and wildlife, among a series of other issues expressed by the residents at previous meetings.
The ordinance had its first reading on Jan. 13, when the Town Board made minor changes, and will have a second reading and possible action at the Feb. 10 Town Board meeting.
To read the entire story – as well as an article detailing the discussion at the Plan Commission meeting – see the Jan. 23 edition of the Burlington Standard Press.
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