5.1 PCSR 08-23-1994 - Laserfiche WebLink

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ATTACHMENT 5 August 15, 1994 Elk River Planning Commission Elk River City Hall Elk River, MN 55330 Dear Commission; SUBJECT: Shiely Company Mine Proposal The following are the concerns we, the residents of Greenhead II and III, have with the request by Shiely Company for a conditional use permit to mine gravel south of county road 33 and east of Watson Street. We are hopeful that this request will not be granted and life as we know it in this area of Elk River will remain the same tomorrow as it is today. ISSUE #1 - SAFETY ON COUNTY ROAD 33. The traffic count on this road compared to the traffic count when Shiely Company purchased this land some years back has increased greatly, from some 50 cars per day to an estimated 1600 cars per day. We can only assume that this traffic load will only increase over the next 15 - 20 years. The proposed entrance by slow moving gravel trucks to Co. 33 is and will remain a • hazard to the amount of traffic and inherent nature of road this is. With the close proximity to the intersection of Co. 77, Proctor Ave., we do not believe the safety issue concerning this can be corrected without a complete change in this section of road. Elk River School District has at least 5 school buses that travel this road on a daily basis, and we would hope the safety of our children will be considered when making this decision and no conditional use permit granted until this road has been improved to accommodate the current and future traffic in addition to the slower and larger vehicles which will result from the mining operation. ISSUE #2 - HOURS OF OPERATION. Shiely Company is requesting, should a conditional use permit be granted, that their hours of operation be between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. weekdays. In addition they are proposing to operate their wash plant and the sale of product between 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. on weekdays and between 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. on Saturdays. While these hours may be acceptable for a commercial nonresidential area it is not acceptable for an area zoned for residential lots. We are convinced that whatever business hours Shiely would propose, gravel trucks will begin entering the mine area from 30 to 60 minutes before scheduled opening. Before a conditional use permit is granted these hours must be scrutinized. •