Applications for two proposed gravel pits in and around the Anchor Point area were appealed over the last couple of weeks.
Emmitt Trimble, the manager of Beachcomber LLC appealed the Kenai Peninsula Borough Planning Commission’s decision to deny his permit request to excavate roughly 30 acres near the mouth of the Anchor River. The panel denied the permit in a 6-3 vote in July.
The planning commission denied the application after hearing hours of testimony about the potential visual and noise impacts, among other concerns.
Trimble declined to comment for this story. He wrote in his appeal, “The two stated findings of fact are erroneous.”
Two separate parties also appealed the commission’s decision on another application for a gravel pit near North Fork Road. The planning commission approved Axel Enterprises’ proposal to dig up nearly 30 acres near a creek flowing into the north fork of the Anchor River.
Cook Inletkeeper appealed the decision. The environmental organization’s advocacy director Bob Shavelson claims the project would harm surface and ground water sources in the area.
Three Anchor Point residents Jane Tollesfsrud, Kathleen Finn and Tammy Buss also filed an appeal. They cited a range of issues from visual and noise disturbances to the value of their properties declining. They all say the borough’s standards for material extraction are out of date.
The planning commission and the borough assembly planned to revise those codes this summer, but the assembly postponed the decision. Both plan to pick up the discussion again this fall.
Borough Planner Bruce Wall says notifications about the appeals will go out to residents who testified on both applications. Hearings could take place within the next couple of months.
