2017-12-12_PERMIT FILE - M2017049 (111)

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December 8, 2017 D, Ms. Amy Eschberger Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety DEC 017 1313 Sherman Street, Room 215 D(VISIOtj(?; Denver, CO 80203 Ms. Eschberger, pray that this letter does not fall on blind eyes and deaf ears. As a property owner in the Southwest Highway 115 area, I object to Transit Mix Con- crete Company's (TM's) application M2017-049 to establish a quarry on Hitch Rack Ranch for the following reasons: 1. From 1992 until 2014, my wife and I had to haul water to our property because we could not get water via a well (drilled 6 dry holes) and no utility would provide us with water until Keeton Ranch Water source became available in mid-2011. After almost 3 years and $40,000 we finally got water to make our life easier and to increase the value of our home and property. Now that water source is in jeop- ardy if Transit Mix Concrete Company is able establish a quarry. Blasting could very easily destroy the wells that provide water for both Keeton Ranch Water and Red Rock Valley Water. As we all know, Transit Mix Concrete Company would deny all responsibility should that happen. As home owners, we would not be able financially to go against Transit Mix Concrete Company (big money) and prove liability. Property values would go down drastically. 2. Traffic on Highway 115 is very bad and congested already. It is already one of the most hazardous highways in Colorado. There are already 3 quarries along Highway 115 between Penrose, CO and Colorado Springs, CO that creates a lot of truck traffic. A lot of the time when I go to Colorado Spring now; I see 4 con- struction trucks at one time hauling gravel. Just this week while setting at the light at Ft. Carson main gate, I saw 4 construction trucks going north and 2 construc- tion trucks going south. The burden of another quarry will only add more trucks to this problem. Driving Highway 115 is hazardous to our windshields. Quite often I see gravel dripping from truck tailgates. 3. We enjoy the wild life that comes thru our property on a daily basis. That will probably stay the same for my wife and I as we live far enough from the pro- posed quarry. It is not fair for the property owners that live near the proposed quarry (along Little Turkey Creek Rd.) to loose wild life, easement rights, and to be subject to the noise and disruption of the daily quarry activities. Wild life habi- tat also needs to be protected. 4. 1 know that many residents in Colorado Springs would like to get rid of the visible scar along the Front Range. This I understand; however we do not want it in our back yards. We were here first.