1990-01377-Minutes for Meeting August 10,1989 Recorded 1/11/19905
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DESCHUTES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
SURFACE MINING HEARINGS ..M
August 10, 1989
Deschutes County Administration Building /
6:30 PM
JAN 2 41~9E~
Call to Order
Chair Prante called the meeting to order at 6:32 PM. Commissioners
Throop and Maudlin were also present. Staff members present were
Karen Green, Community Development Director, and George Read,
Planning Director, and Sue Stoneman, recorder.
Public Hearing
Chair Prante read aloud the purpose and procedures of the hearings.
The audience was polled to determine the order of the hearings,
sites with the most people present to testify were heard first.
It was announced that the hearing would be held open to receive
written testimony for an additional week from tonight.
Chair Prante then called for declarations of conflict or pre-
hearing contacts, or challenges. Commissioner Throop responded
that he had none on the first four sites. Commissioner Maudlin
stated he had a conversation with Mr. Windlinx when the map first
came out on Site 394 and he went to the Planning Department.
Commissioner Throop stated that he had a conversation with Mr.
Windlinx as well on process. There were no challenges.
Site 542
George Read gave the staff report. This is a five-acre site east
of Sisters owned by Swarens et al, and contains an estimated 80,000
cubic yards of good quality aggregate. It is located on the corner
of Highway 126 and Jordan Road. Staff had identified conflicting
uses as fish and wildlife areas and habitats, and rural residential
uses. Staff had recommended allowing the use with conditions.
Chair Prante called for neutral or proponent's testimony. There
was none. She then called for opposing testimony.
Jim Cummins, 17732 Edmonson Road, submitted photographs of the
site. He noted the presence of a surface mining site approximately
1.5 miles away on Jordan Road which was not objected to by any of
the neighboring residents. He felt there were conflicts with the
rezoning of the site for mining, since the developers intend to use
the site for another purpose. Another issue is the transferring
of Squaw Creek irrigation water used for agricultural purposes in
the area. In the report from the planning department they talk of
transferring some water rights which will be needed for dust
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control. He asked about the specifics of the transfer. He thinks
this land is highly desireable as open space. The site is in the
path of a deer crossing area marked on the highway. He felt the
area had value as a scenic resource with outstanding views on an
'Access Oregon' road.
Tygh Redfield, 68860 Goodrich Road, stated that the SM zoning
conflicts with previously approved RR-10 zoning and the newly
approved zoning for cluster development in the area. This is right
across the street from where the rural residential clustering is
to be built. If this use is approved, some of George Cyrus's water
rights would have to be moved from his farm land to this site for
dust control.
Ruth Paul, 69525 Camp Polk Road, stated she lives at the far end
of the meadow where the site is. This site is within a flood
plain, and the whole meadow flooded in 1964.
Jim Everett, 17045 Highway 126, stated his concurrence with the
others. He noted the presence of a dangerous curve in the road at
the site.
Seven more people in the audience raised their hands to show their
opposition to this site.
Site 541
George Read gave the staff report. This site is on the south side
of Camp Polk Road along Squaw Creek. It is 22 acres owned by
Swarens et al and contains and estimated 528,000 cubic yards of
good quality aggregate. After the Planning Commission hearing,
staff changed its recommendation to denial based upon the resource
value and Goal 5 values with Squaw Creek.
Chair Prante called for neutral or proponents' testimony. There
was none. She then called for opposing testimony.
Tygh Redfield, 68860 Goodrich Road, submitted written testimony.
He noted conflicts with fish and wildlife and water use resources
at this site. There are also conflicts with ecological and
environmentally sensitive areas and land needed for open space.
Squaw Creek is in a riparian area and within the flood plain. 95%
of the proposed area for the surface mining is taken in by the 100-
year water mark of the flood plain. He has seen bald eagles,
golden eagles, herons, osprey, geese, ducks, and deer in this area.
He stated that Mr. Cyrus had said that when he checked the
aggregate source and took out a 6 foot deep scoop of earth, it
immediately filled with water. That water came from the Squaw
Creek drainage basin which affects the water table. He felt this
site was an ecologically significant wildlife area because of the
riparian nature of the area. He noted there has been a proposal
for a cluster development on this land, but the proposal doesn't
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provide for any development in the flood plain, according to Ed
Fitch, the county hearings officer. The ponds are in the flood
plain. He felt they were the main reasons the Rural Preservation
Committee is opposed to the site. He asked that the Board accept
the Planning Commission's recommendation.
Jim Cummins, 17732 Edmonson Road, felt that any use of heavy
equipment on the floor of Squaw Creek would be very detrimental.
Nine members of the audience indicated their opposition to this
site as well.
There was no further testimony offered on this site.
Sites 394 and 395
George Read gave the staff report for site 394. This site is
located on South Highway 97 east of the weigh station south of
Bend. The site is presently zoned SM and SMR. This is a cinder
site owned by Robert Windlinx. There is an estimated 120,000 cubic
yards of course red cinders on the site. He showed the site
location on a map. There was some discussion regarding limiting
the zoning to the resource that will be mined rather than the
entire parcel which is quite large. The site is 41.7 acres on the
south and east side of the state site, and 4.4 acres to the north
of the state site that lies in the middle of this site. There was
some discussion about the size of the state site contained within
this taxlot. Mr. Read estimated the size of the state site to be
approximately 20 acres. The entire taxlot is 700 acres.
Conflicting resources are rural residential development and
conflicts with the High Desert Museum. Staff had recommended
approval subject to conditions.
Mr. Read gave the staff report for site 395. This is the state
site located within the previous site. It is 22 acres and contains
an estimated 100,000 cubic yards of cinders. Staff recommended
approval with all the same conditions as those on the Windlinx
site. The Planning Commission recommended both these sites be
zoned SM.
Chair Prante called for neutral testimony. There was none. She
then called for proponents' testimony on site 394.
Robert Windlinx, 59900 South Highway 97, came forward. He stated
it would be alright to zone only the portion they plan to mine,
they don't want their whole ranch zoned SM. 360 acres are zoned
F2 and the rest is RR-10. The entire property is under a forest
management plan. They maintain a wildlife management program on
the ranch and they don't graze any cattle. They have taken cinders
out for about nine years, it is a small operation. They have
mining since before 1981. The sites are zoned SMR.
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Chair Prante then called for opposing testimony.
Bill Jones, 19409 Cherokee Road, stated that he is right across
the highway from the proposed site. He opposed the dust and noise
that would result from the proposed use. He noted the presence of
another cinder site in the area and questioned whether two sites
were necessary. He stated that this is on a dangerous stretch of
Highway 97, where it is single lanes, and heavy trucks accessing
that point would be dangerous. He has lived there for about two
years, and has found the present mining levels offensive.
Jerry Moore, 59800 South Highway 97, submitted written testimony
in advance of the meeting. They are not opposed to the existing
zoning of SMR. He had noted some errors in the staff report and
submitted corrections. He was opposed to zoning as large a parcel
as that reflected on the map for mining. He stated that the
ongoing levels of mining had not been a problem, but was opposed
to a very large site.
Mr. Windlinx stated they would be willing to limit operations to
existing levels.
Kathy Alexander, 19409 Cherokee, stated she is opposed to increased
levels of mining.
There was no further testimony offered on this site. Chair Prante
then called for testimony on site 395.
Roland Van Cleave, State Highway Division geologist, stated there
is a size discrepancy in the staff report. He stated that the site
is actually 15.1 acres in size. This site has been in existence
since at least 1955. DOGAMI issued a permit in 1978 when they took
out 18,000 cubic yards. The site has not been used since 1978 for
any great amount. The site has been used intermittently since that
time. The site presently stretches in a NE/SW direction through
a pressure ridge. The state probably won't change its method of
operation right now. It is a backup site for cinder material. He
noted that the highway will become four lanes and the greatest use
for this site in the future will be at that time and they may also
use the material for the Division Street widening. He stated they
have a fee title for 15.1 acres in the middle of the Windlinx site.
There was no further testimony offered on site 395.
Site 363
Commissioner Throop introduced Jan Ernst from the State Parks
Division. She just received the notice today for the sites heard
last night, so she will submit written testimony.
George Read gave the staff report on this site. The site is
presently zoned SM and is 15 acres in size. It is owned by the
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county and contains an estimated 250,000 cubic yards of cinders.
This site was formerly owned by Mr. Comstock. Identified
conflicting resources are open space and rural residential
development. Staff had recommended allowing mining with the
standard conditions, and the Planning Commission accepted that
recommendation.
Chair Prante called for neutral or proponents' testimony. There
was none. She then called for opposing testimony.
Dan Griggs, 65330 Kiowa Drive, asked how they will haul the cinders
out of the site. He lives about 200 feet from that site and was
concerned about access. He asked that it go back to residential
zoning.
Mr. Read noted that the site is currently zoned SM and has been
mined in the past.
Ed O'Neil, 7555 Gift Road, stated that he lives close to the area
and asked that access be only on public roads and not private
roads.
George McEckman, SE 85th, stated that he lives right next to this
site and site 361. He was concerned about how deep the sites would
be mined. He was concerned about having a deep dropoff next door
to his property.
David McNaughton, 65230 94th, asked for clarification of the site
location. Mr. Read explained. He stated that he is in opposition
and would submit written testimony.
There was no further testimony on this site.
At this time, the meeting broke from 8:00 to 8:10 PM. After
reconvening, Chair Prante again outlined the purpose and procedures
of the hearings. She called for declarations of conflict or pre-
hearing contacts or challenges. Commissioner Maudlin stated that
he had visited site 488. There were no challenges.
Site 423
George Read gave the staff report. The site is located near the
intersection of LaPine State Park Road and Huntington Road. It is
surrounded by rural residential property. It is nine acres
containing an estimated 20,000 cubic yards of good quality
aggregate. Staff had recommended SM zoning with conditions and
the Planning Commission recommended not to allow processing on the
site. Mr. Read indicated there were letters of testimony on file.
Chair Prante called for neutral or proponents' testimony.
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Ray Rothbard, 54411 Huntington, came forward. He lives on the site
and asked how they got the estimated amounts and he had questions
about processing. Karen Green explained the process and agreed to
send him copies of the file contents. He has a well drilling rig
that indicates there is a layer of sand that could be 80 to 100
feet deep. He estimated the site would contain at least 200,000
cubic yards of sand and gravel.
Chair Prante then called for opposing testimony. There was none.
Site 362
George Read gave the staff report. The site is located on the west
side of 85th Place on the flanks of Long Butte. It is 10 acres
owned by Patricia Pruitt and contains an estimated 250,000 cubic
yards of good quality cinders. Identified conflicts are open space
and rural residential use. There are 50 taxlots within one half
mile of the site. Staff recommended approval with conditions.
There are no fish and wildlife restrictions on this site and no
other limits placed on the recommendation. The Planning Commission
also recommended approval. There is one letter on file containing
testimony on this site. This site has been mined in the past
dating back to 1984 according to the DOGAMI permits for one acre
10 to 15 feet deep.
Chair Prante called for proponents' testimony. There was none.
She then called for opposing testimony.
Steve Stuart, 20965 Limestone Ave., came forward. He will be
submitting photographs for the record when they are ready. He owns
four acres nearby which his residence is on. He stated that the
site has been mined before. He stated that 85th Place runs right
next to it and within eight feet of the road there is a 75 foot
dropoff now. His concern was due to the fact that approval would
deepen that dropoff. There is a three to four percent grade which
is especially a concern in the winter when there are slick driving
conditions. If this is approved, he asked that a guardrail be
installed.
There was no further testimony on this site.
Site 449
George Read gave the staff report. This site is located north of
COI's main canal east of 27th Street. The site is presently zoned
EFU-20. It is a 40 acre site owned by COI containing an estimated
6,000 cubic yards of fill material. The primary conflict is rural
residential development. Staff had recommended approval with the
standard conditions.
Chair Prante called for proponents' testimony. There was none.
She then called for opposing testimony.
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Teresa Hanson, 61708 SW 27th St., came forward. Her property abuts
the site. She asked where access to the site would be from. Their
home is 30 feet from the access road. She stated that they have
not been mining the site, it has been very infrequent. She
estimated two to three trucks per year are going out of there now.
It was explained that this site would not be surface mined, just
used to get dirt to repair canals. She expressed concern about the
dirt and dust.
John Schaeffer, stated that they will be building in this area.
He asked if this would only be mined at historic levels under the
grandfather clause. He stated that trash is being dumped on this
site now from cleaning canals.
Ralph Boese, 61707 Ward Road, asked what designates a mining pit
and what level of historic use constitutes a surface mine. He did
not think there had been that much taken out, and he has hauled
loads off of his property. He was concerned that this could be
sold as a surface mine to someone who might mine it more actively.
Betty Priday, Ward Road, stated that 6,000 cubic yards is nothing
when it comes to doing some emergency work. She was concerned for
the safety of children with the pit, citing a situation where a
child had drowned in a pit. She was also concerned about
reclamation.
Jim Smiley, 61621 SE 27th, stated he had not received notice and
that the map was incorrectly marked. He concurs with Ron Gossett's
letter that was submitted. He was also concerned about traffic
safety on this road with the heavy truck traffic.
Patty Bailey stated she owns the property on the SE corner across
the road. She asked how long it would take to extract 6,000 cubic
yards and asked that dust and noise be kept down.
Mr. Boese stated he did not think there had been a load taken from
the site before 1973.
There was no further testimony offered on this site.
Site 452
George Read gave the staff report. The site is located on the
northeast side of Gift Road, presently zoned EFU-20. It is a 40
acre site owned by COI containing an estimated 7,500 cubic yards
of fill material. Staff had recommended approval, and the Planning
Commission adopted that recommendation with no on-site processing
allowed.
Chair Prante called for proponents' testimony. There was none.
She then called for opposing testimony.
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Kathy Bryan, 21510 Gift Road, stated that she lives about 50 feet
from the site's property line. She stated there is not much
activity at the site and it doesn't bother anyone, and noted that
dead animal carcasses are sometimes dumped at the site. She
questioned whether the amount of resource available warranted the
SM zoning designation. She stated that the topsoil is only about
one foot deep there. She was concerned for the safety of the 30
to 40 children who walk Gift Road each day for school buses. She
asked if reclamation meant that they would bring more dirt in.
Commissioner Maudlin stated there is only reclamation if the site
is zoned SM. Commissioner Throop stated that the manager at COI
had indicated he was satisfied with not zoning the site for mining,
but allowing historic levels of use. She noted that the staff
report indicated the site contained cinders and had only one house
within one half mile. She stated that was incorrect.
Frank Michaels, 65480 73rd, stated that from his house he looks
down on this site. He complimented the recent job of paving Gift
Road, and indicated that it was only an oil mat not designed to
hold up under heavy truck traffic. He asked that there be minimal
truck traffic on the road.
Robert Ashburn, 65467 73rd, noted the presence of wildlife in the
area, mostly deer and rabbits. He thought that 40 acres was too
large a site to be disturbed. He agreed with all previous
testimony on this site.
There was no further testimony offered on this site.
Site 451
George Read gave the staff report. The site is located between
the Pilot Butte canal and Highway 97. It is a 40 acre site owned
by COI containing an estimated 30,000 cubic yards of fill material.
Conflicts are rural residential development. Staff had recommended
SM zoning with the standard conditions.
Chair Prante called for proponents' testimony. There was none.
She then called for opponents' testimony.
Peter DuBelle, 21565 Dale Road, stated that the visual impacts of
this use would be detrimental to the city of Bend. He noted that
this was a very busy intersection at Deschutes Market Road and
Highway 97. This will not fit in with the rural character of the
neighborhood. He was concerned about noise, dust, and sight
pollution that would result from this use.
Commissioner Maudlin stated that this site was owned by Harvey
Hillis and not COI.
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Carol Nelson, 21500 Morrell Road, stated this would be a detriment
to Highway 97.
Jack Hulse, 21440 Morrow Road, stated that he is mainly concerned
with the appearance of the site in the area. He felt it would
detract from industrial development planned for the area.
There was no further testimony offered on this site.
Site 482
George Read gave the staff report. This is a 1908 acre site east
of Redmond owned by Deschutes County. The site contains an
estimated 2,000,000 cubic yards of fill dirt and is also used as
a storage site. The site is known as Negus Landfill. They would
like to limit the size of this site for surface mining zoning. He
had a legal description for the size they wish to designate SM.
Identified conflicts are open space, outstanding views, and
cultural areas. There was one letter of testimony on this site on
file.
Chair Prante called for neutral or proponents, testimony. There
was none. She then called for opposing testimony.
Jim Newton, 3407 NE Upas, Redmond, stated that his home is north
of the site. He had questions about access. Mr. Read stated that
access will be from Antler and may be from other points, which will
be determined during the site plan phase. He asked if the trees
would be removed for mining purposes, and stated that some needed
to be left for wildlife, especially since so many have been lost
due to fire.
Jack Cook, 3990 NE Walnut, stated that he would submit some written
testimony during the next week. He was concerned about the road
hazards on the access road to the dump and felt that a better
access road was needed. He was also concerned about the dust
factor.
There was no further testimony offered on this site.
Site 488
George Read read the staff report. The site is located west of
Cline Falls Road north of Tumalo. It is presently zoned SM, it is
143 acres in size and is owned by CLR, Inc. It contains an
estimated 400,000 cubic yards of aggregate. This site is known as
the Highland site. Identified conflicts are open space and
residential use. Staff recommended SM zoning and the Planning
Commission approved that with conditions, and no processing to be
allowed on site. There were several taxlots included in this site.
There was one letter of testimony on file on this site.
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Chair Prante called for neutral or proponents' testimony.
Jim Curl, 63295 Old Deschutes Road, stated that he and his brother
own this site. It is their current extraction site. They use the
site for processing. Their best estimate is 200,000 cubic yards
on the site at this point, which is about enough for one more
season. They are operating under site and reclamation plan with
Deschutes County and DOGAMI. They just received an award for
reclamation of the site. He asked that they continue SM zoning.
Chair Prante then called for opposing testimony.
Ken Cardwell, 65110 Highland Road, asked if this is an expansion
or change from past activity. He stated that for six years they
have been putting up with the noise and the dust and they hoped it
was ending. Commissioner Maudlin stated that this would not be an
expansion of the existing use. Mr. Cardwell was concerned about
the topography of the area and the remaining trees and wildlife.
The use is taking the hill away creating flat land.
Virginia Davis, 19950 Nichols Market Road, had submitted written
testimony. She was concerned over increasing traffic in the area
and traffic safety.
Site 367
George Read gave the staff report. This site is located north of
Tumalo joining the Highland site. It is ten acres owned by Charles
Kelly, containing an estimated 151,000 cubic yards of ODOT quality
aggregate. Conflicting resources were identified as open space and
rural residential uses. Staff recommended approval subject to the
standard conditions including seasonal operation. The Planning
Commission deleted the ODF&W winter closure condition. Mr. Read
had received a call from Mr. Kelly, who indicated he was no longer
interested in having this property zoned for surface mining, but
he did not submit anything in writing. The site is currently zoned
MUA-10.
Chair Prante called for proponents' testimony. There was none.
She then called for opposing testimony.
Ken Cardwell testified against this site for the same reasons he
was opposed to the Highland site.
Pat Gregg, 64981 Highland Road, stated his concurrence with Mr.
Cardwell's testimony. He said there were a lot of children in the
area who would be impacted.
Mr. Cardwell reiterated his statement that this use will carve away
at the hillside, changing the topography of the area.
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There was no further testimony on this site. Chair Prante stated
that the Board will announce their decisions on September 6th.
Adjournment
Being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 9:50 PM.
DESCHUTES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
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