CASPER — Gravel haul trucks and other heavy commercial vehicles will need a special permit to travel on at least 26 Natrona County residential roads following a vote this week by the Natrona County Board of Commissioners.
The county board passed the resolution 3-1 with Chairman Dave North not voting and Commissioner Jim Milne voting against it. The resolution gives the county board the authority to identify and restrict certain roads in the county to commercial truck traffic.
Several residents who live on roads at the base of Casper Mountain where gravel mining has been proposed favored the resolution.
Attempts to clear a path for gravel mining have so far been denied by a county board zoning amendment last fall and by the Wyoming State Board of Land Commissioners decision not to renew six land leases for gravel mine operator Prism Logistics in June. Prism has targeted the state school section as its primary starting point for mining.
The company has filed petitions challenging the county’s zoning decision and State Land Board’s actions in Natrona County District Court. Those decisions are pending.
Natrona County Road & Bridge Superintendent Mike Haigler told commissioners Tuesday he used the criteria from the proposed resolution to make his initial list of county roads that would require a permit.
“I’ve come up with 26 roads that would immediately fall into that,” he said. “And there are a number of additional roads that I am still looking at the zoning.”
One of the roads identified was Coates Road, which runs along Section 36, the school section. Other roads at the base of the mountain, including Squaw Creek were also included. When asked, Haigler said he agreed with the resolution.
The resolution will prohibit vehicles of more than 26,000 pounds from operating on roads that provide access to residential areas subject to zoning, are not constructed to commercial truck standards, and have no alternative outlet.
“Tandem axle trucks may only operate on such roads under a valid permit,” the resolution states. Permits are to be recommended by Road & Bridge and approved by the county board. Criteria considered for the permit includes safety conditions, trip frequency and duration, the type of material hauled and seasonal or emergency situations.
Exceptions
Exceptions in the resolution included agriculture vehicles not part of “recurring high-volume transport,” single deliveries to a residence or ranch of goods and materials, emergency vehicles, and county-owned maintenance vehicles.
The resolution states that “permits shall only be issued for vehicle use in support of land uses that are consistent with the existing zoning regulations applicable to the properties accessed from the designated road.”
Action by the county board last fall to change its zoning map removed mining from the list of approved uses possible through a special use permit in the residential mountain zone at the base of Casper Mountain.
About a dozen people spoke in favor of the resolution — several who live on Coates Road.
Resident Walter Merschat, who lives on Coates Road, said he and his wife were in favor of the resolution.
He said if Prism Logistics started mining 17 acres going down 25 feet as it announced it planned to do, the number of trucks needed to mine the 960,000 tons of material with just small 10-ton trucks would be 96,000 truck trips down Coates Road.
“It is not designed to support gravel mining,” he said.
Carolyn Griffith, chairperson of the Casper Mountain Preservation Alliance, which has fought the gravel mine proposal, supported the resolution.
She said it was important that the resolution addressed not just Coates Road but other residential roads in the county as well.
“Following a UPS truck up and down these gravel roads you get inundated with dirt, dust, and rocks. People who live on the corners get inundated by it by those who go too fast. I am in favor of this resolution,” she said.
There was no one who spoke against the resolution.
Board Over ‘Riverbank’
North said the board did receive a letter of opposition from Prism Logistics Manager Kyle True.
The letter states that the board’s action is the definition of “arbitrary and capricious” and said the company would consider legal action if it was passed.
True, who has said in the past that his company would take care of the maintenance of Coates Road if allowed to mine gravel, told Cowboy State Daily the county board was over its “riverbank.”
“The county is acting as if they have no restrictions,” he said. “There are some things that any regulatory body cannot do. … And any regulatory body that does not recognize the riverbanks that prescribe its appropriate area of authority and action are likely to and perhaps inevitably overreach their authority. And I think our county commissioners are doing so right now.”
Milne said he believed the resolution was too broad and tried to propose amending it to include just the roads at the base of the mountain, then withdrew it. He also wanted any roads on the list to first be initiated by county residents.
“It needs to be initiated by the residents of the area and then needs to be evaluated by Road & Bridge. … I do not think this as it stands (the resolution) should be passed at this time.”
When Haigler was asked by Milne to identify the most important roads, Haigler replied he thought all 26 needed to be part of the list.
Commissioner Casey Coates said he believed the resolution accomplished what the board hoped to do.
“I think moving on this allows us to help the county and its people,” he said.
Commissioner Dallas Laird called himself a “safety guy” and said he did research in other counties and found that many of them won’t allow big trucks on dirt roads because “it is dangerous.”
He said “big time” gravel operators have stated they only run the big trucks on paved roads and in addition they put berms around their gravel mines.
“I’m for passing this tonight,” he said. “The public has spoken.”
Commissioner Peter Nicolaysen said he was comfortable passing the resolution knowing that it can be revised in the future.
He said some of the roads on the list might come off the list in the future if substantial changes are made to the roads.
Nicolaysen asked the ordinance wording be changed to give the Board of County Commissioners and its “designee” the source for identifying the roads that are subject to restrictions and not Road & Bridge.
After the other commissioners voted their approval for the resolution, Milne voiced his opposition.
“I think we are hitting this with a fricking machete instead of a scalpel,” he said.
Dale Killingbeck can be reached at dale@cowboystatedaily.com.
