Wichita lets gravel pit get bigger despite complaints of violations, dust
A south Wichita dirt and sand-mining operation will be allowed to more than double in size and add a rock crusher, despite complaints from neighbors that dust from the existing operation already keeps them inside their homes during the day.
The Wichita City Council turned aside the neighbors' protests and upheld a Planning Commission recommendation to allow Wichita home developer Jay Russell to expand a 20-acre topsoil operation into a 47-acre sand and gravel pit on the east bank of the Arkansas River south of East 55th Street South.
In addition, the council approved the use of a mobile crusher at the site to process salvaged asphalt and concrete into gravel for up to three months a year.
About a dozen neighborhood opponents attended the council meeting but weren't allowed to speak because the Planning Commission had already held a public hearing.
The Planning Commission voted 8-1 to approve the plan; the District Advisory Board, which also heard from the neighbors, voted 7-0 for denial.
The council sided with the Planning Commission on a 6-1 vote, with Brandon Johnson in opposition.
Afterward, neighbors said they were disappointed in the council vote and expect things to get worse as mining operations expand.
"Dust. My kids can't even play outside when they're running trucks," said Megan Miller, who lives adjacent to the site. "It's summer. My kids want to be outside and play. We're stuck inside until they're done for the day."
The mining generally starts between 6 and 7 a.m. and runs until about 6 p.m., said neighbor Rustin Atkeisson, who lives across the dirt street from the site.
"Knowing that the current conditions should have had this permit removed several years ago is very aggravating," Atkeisson said.
Council member Cindy Claycomb said she visited the site and observed what appeared to be several violations of the existing operating permit, including pits dug deeper than currently allowed and a lack of required fencing.
But Planning Director Dale Miller advised the council that they couldn't consider how the operation has been run up until now in making their decision on whether to allow it to be expanded.
"Courts have ruled that past violations aren't supposed to be held against the same person in the future, because past practice may not be what they do in the future," Miller said.
He said the Planning Department has moved to address some of the neighbors' complaints, but routine monitoring isn't practical because the city has only two zoning inspectors, one for the east side of the city and one for the west.
Russell could not immediately be reached for comment.
James Clendenin, the council member who represents the area, made the motion to approve the expansion, but with a requirement for an on-site manager to make sure the operation complies with its permit rules going forward.
"We cannot have the community dealing with what they have dealt with," Clendenin said.
But he said that while he's obligated to address the neighbors' concerns, "I also have an obligation to those wanting to develop land and the ability of land owners to have their right to their land as long as they're being good neighbors."
The original permit, issued in 2015, allowed for Russell to remove topsoil from 20 acres over a two-year period and prepare the site for a housing development.
But flood zone maps were expanded to include much of the property that was originally envisioned for homes, so that idea is no longer practical, according to a city staff report.
The new permit allows for sand and gravel mining on 47 acres for up to 10 years. It also allows Russell to stockpile salvaged asphalt and concrete trucked in from other sites and to crush it for recycling as construction material.
This story was originally published July 10, 2018 at 2:31 PM.