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~ . i~~ ~; <br /> <br /> STAFF REVIEW - C29-89: BOOK; 1.752 PAGE 28b <br />' Page 2 <br />' to the riverfiront area would 6e destroyed. if the entire <br />wetland is fiilled. It may be possible to connect the new lake <br /> with the existing lake to provide more critical habitat for <br /> wildlife. <br /> <br /> The proposed gravel pit will result in a 14 acre lake and 3.7 <br /> acres of banks and shores afiter operations cease. As proposed <br /> this property then would be donated to the Colorado Riverfront <br />' Commission. Instead, the most appropriate entity to receive <br /> the property should be determined, i.e. Mesa County, City of <br /> Grand Junction, or Colorado State Parks. <br />' <br /> Access to the site is proposed off ofi C-1/2 Road with 30 Road <br /> serving as the major haul route. Other gravel pit operations <br /> use 30 Road, a minor arterial, as well. Current traffiic <br /> counts fior this stretch of 30 Road are not available, but area <br /> counts on D Road and north on 30 Road indicate about 3500 <br /> average daily trips per day. Truck trafifiic should be limited <br />' to avoid school bus traffic. Total traffic generated from the <br /> operation should not exceed the number of vehicle trips now <br /> generated by United's Golden pit on 30 Road. Other gravel <br />' operations have limited operation hours set by Mesa County. <br /> The Mesa County Mineral Extraction Policy #29 applies to this <br /> proposal. Although the site is not indicated as a gravel <br />' resource area on the County Mineral Resource Survey, it is <br /> adjacent to other commercially valuable deposits, and the <br /> petitioner has determined the site is worth mining. Policy <br />' #29 protects mineral deposits from uncompatible land uses and <br /> encourages extraction of the resource. The policy also <br /> requires bufifiering between proposed extraction operations and <br /> existing, adJacent residential uses per section 4.3 of the <br />' Land Use. Code. <br /> Policy #26, the Mesa County Parks Master Plan, recognizes the <br /> development ofi the Colorado River Greenbelt from Palisade l'u <br /> Fruita as a priority. This area is also within the proposed <br /> Colorado River State Park and would he an important link <br />' between Corn Lake and the future river development at the <br /> Climax mill tailings pile. Conceptual plans for the <br /> development ofi the greenbelt include a pedestrian/bicycle <br /> trail following 'the river bank and/or the right of way for the <br />' Public Service Company's transmission line. <br /> Mesa County and the City of Grand Junction have been acquiring <br />' and accepting generally 100-foot wide easements for riverfront <br /> trail development. This width is considered adequate fior <br /> construction, maintenance, and bufifiering of the trail. To <br /> provide a link to future trail development downstream from the <br />' site, the trail easement should fiollow the north and east <br /> property lines ofi the Mesa County open space parcel, continue <br /> north along a the west line of Virginia Acres then follow the <br />' Public Service right of way downstream. A plan was prepared <br /> by the County Planning Department fior the construction of two <br /> trail alternatives firom Corn Lake to the Tailings Pile. <br />' <br />