Post by jonsdigs on Dec 14, 2006 11:22:16 GMT -5
First steps OK'd toward allowing concrete plant in Alachua off U.S. 441
By Ronald Dupont Jr.
High Springs Herald Editor
ALACHUA - The first steps have been approved for a concrete batch plant to move into Alachua off U.S. 441 near Sabine and the Electro Energy battery plant.
The city commission unanimously approved rezoning the 10-acre parcel of land from agriculture to industrial general, giving the developer, Alachua Partners LLC, the opportunity to move forward with getting approval to build a concrete batch plant.
At a batch plant, the concrete is made from aggregate, water and other materials, then dropped into concrete trucks - commonly referred to as cement trucks - that then takes the concrete to various job sites.
Another batch plant has been propopsed for a site on the Hipp Construction property, and that plant has garnered much controversy because of its proximity to neighborhoods and the downtown area. Dozens of people have shown up at city meetings to protest it.
But the new batch plant drew very little protest Monday as the developer's representative, Gerry Dedenbach of Causseaux & Ellington, pointed out that the proposed plant would not be located near any neighborhoods.
In fact, the land last year was proposed for a neighborhood but the commission turned down the idea, saying too much industrial use surrounded the property.
The only concerns by residents Monday over the idea of a batch plant came from a few who questioned the 327 truck trips a day the plant would generate on U.S. 441. One resident, as well as City Commissioner Bonnie Burgess, also questioned how runoff from the site may affect the area's ecosystem.
"It's not just a karst-sensitive area," Burgess said. "It's a highly sensitive karst-sensitive area."
Dedenbach said Alachua Partners LLC hired an environmental expert who determined that there would be "no harm" to the eco-system from the plant.
The report by the environmental expert, as well as traffic reports and other required reports for the batch plant to be considered for approval, will be presented to the city commission at a later date.
Tamara Robbins, a former city commissioner, said she was worried that while the land was being rezoned to industrial, the city had no way to ensure that a batch plant would be built there. The industrial zoning would allow a landfill, among other uses.
"(The land) sits there unused with an agriculture exemption gaining value until they can sell it," Robbins said.
But Dedenbach assured the city commission the the owners had plans for a batch plant and nothing else.
Article
By Ronald Dupont Jr.
High Springs Herald Editor
ALACHUA - The first steps have been approved for a concrete batch plant to move into Alachua off U.S. 441 near Sabine and the Electro Energy battery plant.
The city commission unanimously approved rezoning the 10-acre parcel of land from agriculture to industrial general, giving the developer, Alachua Partners LLC, the opportunity to move forward with getting approval to build a concrete batch plant.
At a batch plant, the concrete is made from aggregate, water and other materials, then dropped into concrete trucks - commonly referred to as cement trucks - that then takes the concrete to various job sites.
Another batch plant has been propopsed for a site on the Hipp Construction property, and that plant has garnered much controversy because of its proximity to neighborhoods and the downtown area. Dozens of people have shown up at city meetings to protest it.
But the new batch plant drew very little protest Monday as the developer's representative, Gerry Dedenbach of Causseaux & Ellington, pointed out that the proposed plant would not be located near any neighborhoods.
In fact, the land last year was proposed for a neighborhood but the commission turned down the idea, saying too much industrial use surrounded the property.
The only concerns by residents Monday over the idea of a batch plant came from a few who questioned the 327 truck trips a day the plant would generate on U.S. 441. One resident, as well as City Commissioner Bonnie Burgess, also questioned how runoff from the site may affect the area's ecosystem.
"It's not just a karst-sensitive area," Burgess said. "It's a highly sensitive karst-sensitive area."
Dedenbach said Alachua Partners LLC hired an environmental expert who determined that there would be "no harm" to the eco-system from the plant.
The report by the environmental expert, as well as traffic reports and other required reports for the batch plant to be considered for approval, will be presented to the city commission at a later date.
Tamara Robbins, a former city commissioner, said she was worried that while the land was being rezoned to industrial, the city had no way to ensure that a batch plant would be built there. The industrial zoning would allow a landfill, among other uses.
"(The land) sits there unused with an agriculture exemption gaining value until they can sell it," Robbins said.
But Dedenbach assured the city commission the the owners had plans for a batch plant and nothing else.
Article