A controversial asphalt plant and gravel pit will be allowed near homes and lakes in Corinna Township over the opposition of area landowners, the Wright County Planning Commission ruled last week. But the board told Knife River Corp. it must limit operation of the asphalt plant to 20 days, shut it down by Dec. 1, restore the land by June 1 next year and fulfill other requirements. Despite the conditions, one outspoken opponent said residents will still have to breathe toxic pollution for three weeks and he’s disappointed in the township and county governments. The planning commission approved Knife River’s request for a conditional use permit Thursday night, June 18, just in time for the start this week of Highway 24 upgrading between Annandale and Clearwater. Construction began Monday, June 18, on Minnesota Department of Transportation plans to increase safety on the narrow highway by widening its two-foot shoulders between Poplar Avenue in Annandale and Wright County Highway 7 near Clearwater. The $14-million project will also widen ditches, add right and left turn lanes and lighting at some intersections and reconstruct the asphalt road surface. The 12.6-mile stretch of highway was closed Monday to through traffic, which is being detoured along County Highway 7 east of Annandale until work is completed in late November. Local residents and business people are being allowed to drive through the work zone, but MnDOT warns them to watch for heavy equipment and traffic control personnel. MnDOT awarded the construction contract to Knife River of Sauk Rapids, which submitted the low bid of $7.5 million on the basis of finishing the job this year except for landscaping and turf establishment. The planning commission approval allows Knife River to temporarily operate the gravel pit and asphalt plant along County Highway 39 about a quarter-mile east of Highway 24 rather than haul material from its existing Silver Creek facility more than four miles away. Knife River representative Brad Arnston has said that will save the company $200,000 in hauling costs alone. The new site is on 15 acres of a cornfield owned by Corinna Township supervisor John Dearing on a hill east of Ireland Avenue. Many area landowners objected to the development, especially the asphalt plant, when the planning commission hearing began May 10 in Buffalo, while many others wrote letters of opposition. "You guys know how people feel," planning administrator Tom Salkowski told Knife River officials on Thursday after commission members voted unanimously to approve the permit. "Let’s make it a good job." The action allows the gravel mining and asphalt plant for the Highway 24 project with these conditions: "1. The bituminous (asphalt) plant shall not operate in the site beyond Dec. 1; "2. The site shall be reclaimed back to viable agricultural land by June 1, 2008; "3. All mining and hauling operations shall be conducted between …7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday-Saturday; "4. The bituminous plant shall operate for no more than 20 days; "5. The applicant shall meet all the requirements of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, the Soil and Water Conservation District, the Wright County Highway Department and Corinna Township as noted in the record." The vote came after Salkowski said the county board of commissioners had decided Tuesday, June 12, that an environmental assessment worksheet requested by opponents won’t be required so the issue was back before the planning board for action. Knife River officials and board members discussed changes to the original proposal, which resulted in the Corinna Township board reversing its initial opposition and endorsing the plan June 5. Among them were agreements to operate the asphalt plant a total of 18 to 20 days and remove it at the end of the construction season or this winter, raise the stack to better disburse emissions, keep water or fluids from flowing from the pit area and control dust. Arnston said Knife River needed the asphalt plant for 20 full 12-hour days. "We’re planning on getting the job done," he said, then getting out of there by the end of the year. If the highway isn’t done by then, it would use the other location next year. Mark Beckman, who said he lives next to the site and stands to lose $150,000 in property value, asked later whether anyone would check to insure work finishes by 7 p.m. In the past, the company has given its phone number to neighbors closest to its operation, Salkowski said. "They’re not evil people in my experience," he said. "They’ve got a job to do." It’s going to be noisy and, depending on the weather, there will be odor. "Somebody has to put up with that for 20 days somewhere," he said. "They said they’re going to be out of there and they’ll be out of there." Beckman also questioned the benefit of Knife River saving $200,000 at the expense of residents like him. Commission member Jack Russek said hauling the material from the Silver Creek plant would burn 40 gallons of extra fuel per truck, and those emissions would go into the air. Cedar Lake resident Dave Wagner asked the commission to require Knife River to post a performance bond and suggested the asphalt plant stack be as high as possible to reduce the impact of fallout for nearby people. The commission took no action on the bond, but Arnston said the company has a 10-foot extension it will install. The effect of that depends on the weather, Salkowski said. Knife River told Corinna Township it would raise the stack, and by reference that’s also part of the commission action, he said. Wagner said the day after the meeting that people were saying he should feel good about the conditions placed on the plant and pit. But the result is still that a 15-acre hill will be removed and "we have to endure three weeks of us breathing toxic pollution." "I couldn’t be more disappointed in my township and county government," he said. "I think they’ve lost sight of the really big picture." He’s concerned with the lack of a process to deal with the issues, Wagner said, and he’s disappointed at the speed with which it’s all handled while not getting an EAW to provide time to investigate. "It’s always a fire drill." His point is that "you err on the side of the environment; you don’t err on the side of business and roads." Wagner said he was writing a letter to the planning commission with a copy to District 1 county commissioner Karla Heeter suggesting "a simple process guided by principles." Among them: Prove a need, harm the fewest number of people and provide some kind of consideration to lessen the impact on those affected. The planning commission also approved permits for Midwest Contracting of Willmar to temporarily mine sand for the highway project on farmland north of Annandale owned by Val and Joan Lawler and Milton and Sandra Ransom.
