Approval of a Conditional Use Permit for a coal mine rail loadout near Williamsburg topped a brief agenda of business for the Fremont County Commissioners at their regular meeting on May 25th. The Commissioners conducted a public hearing on the request of Northfield Partners LLC to operate a railroad loadout on the northeast side of County Road 79 about a mile east of the junction with County Road 11A near Williamsburg. The rail loadout would be located on 11 acres and include a coal stockpiling area, a conveyor system to move the coal, and front-end loaders to load the coal in rail cars. Angela Bellantoni of Environmental Alternatives said that Northfield plans to stockpile about 12,000 tons of coal on the loadout site which would be enough to load a 100-car coal train. She said the proposed conveyor system would eliminate most of the concerns about coal dust.
Northfield earlier secured a Conditional Use Permit from the county in 2006 to operate the coal mine about two miles west of the railroad loadout.
The primary issue of concern involves the need to close County Road 79 to all through traffic for an estimated 12 to 18 hours twice a month while the coal train is loaded and blocking the rail crossing. Bellantoni said as the train is loaded it is moved forward one car at a time. She said a test using an alternate paved route instead of County Road 79 added only about 60-seconds to the driving time. She also reported that the Florence Volunteer Fire Department would not use County Road 79 to respond to emergency calls in that area.
In approving the permit the Board of Commissioners listed conditions requiring Northfield to notify the Florence Police Dispatch Center and the Sheriff's Department in advance of the anticipated road closure. Northfield will also have to post signage warning of the pending road closure 24 hours in advance as well as appropriate signage when the road is actually closed.
At the May 25th meeting the Commissioners also voted to approve the purchase of a pair of road graders and four pickup trucks for the Fremont County Department of Transportation. Colorado Machinery submitted the winning low bid for two John Deere motor graders at a cost of $343,221 which includes the trade-in of a pair of 20 year old motor graders. Colorado Springs Dodge was the successful low bidder on four pickup trucks at a combined price of $119,940. The total cost of the equipment purchase was $463,000 compared to $535,000 that the Commissioners had budgeted for the capital equipment purchases.
In other business the Commissioners:
Northfield earlier secured a Conditional Use Permit from the county in 2006 to operate the coal mine about two miles west of the railroad loadout.
The primary issue of concern involves the need to close County Road 79 to all through traffic for an estimated 12 to 18 hours twice a month while the coal train is loaded and blocking the rail crossing. Bellantoni said as the train is loaded it is moved forward one car at a time. She said a test using an alternate paved route instead of County Road 79 added only about 60-seconds to the driving time. She also reported that the Florence Volunteer Fire Department would not use County Road 79 to respond to emergency calls in that area.
In approving the permit the Board of Commissioners listed conditions requiring Northfield to notify the Florence Police Dispatch Center and the Sheriff's Department in advance of the anticipated road closure. Northfield will also have to post signage warning of the pending road closure 24 hours in advance as well as appropriate signage when the road is actually closed.
At the May 25th meeting the Commissioners also voted to approve the purchase of a pair of road graders and four pickup trucks for the Fremont County Department of Transportation. Colorado Machinery submitted the winning low bid for two John Deere motor graders at a cost of $343,221 which includes the trade-in of a pair of 20 year old motor graders. Colorado Springs Dodge was the successful low bidder on four pickup trucks at a combined price of $119,940. The total cost of the equipment purchase was $463,000 compared to $535,000 that the Commissioners had budgeted for the capital equipment purchases.
In other business the Commissioners:
-
Approved a six month extension of a zone change for Lonny Thompson for property at Highway 50 and 'K' Street in Penrose to allow extra time for handling deed and ownership issues;
-
Approved a $350 refund to the Grand Lodge of the Independent Order of the Oddfellows of their application fee for a recreation area in the Copper Gulch region.