A newly formed assembly group dedicated to reviewing the borough’s material site permitting codes — including gravel pits — will meet for the first time Tuesday. The group is a subcommittee of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly, which heard nearly two hours of testimony on the legislation during its Jan. 18 meeting before voting to table the ordinance.
The legislation up for consideration would, among other things, add to borough code new definitions of phrases like “haul route” and adopt new standards for materials sites that address the protection of fish and wildlife, as well as limit the space between an operation and the edge of a property to 100 feet.
Also up for consideration through the legislation is what role the borough planning commission should have in the conditional land use permitting process. Whether the commission should continue to have the discretion to deny or approve an application and what the scope of that discretion is are among the questions posed by a memo prepared by the borough’s legal team.
Those who opposed the ordinance when it came before the assembly earlier this year pointed out that the legislation had previously been voted down by the body and needs more input from stakeholders.
The subcommittee’s first meeting was initially scheduled for February, but was bumped back to April to allow the borough planning department more time to prepare.
Tuesday’s subcommittee meeting is slated for an hour and a half and will include presentations from Planning Director Melanie Aeschliman and Planner Sam Lopez, as well as from Carol Hasburgh of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, and Natural Resource Specialist Amber-Lynn Tabor.
The meeting can be streamed remotely with Zoom meeting ID 884 7373 9641 and meeting passcode 671108.
Reach reporter Ashlyn O’Hara at ashlyn.ohara@peninsulaclarion.com.
