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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 09/21/2021 PUBLIC HEARING September 21, 2021 Present: Matt Scherr Chairman Jeanne McQueeney Commissioner Kathy Chandler-Henry Commissioner Jeff Shroll County Manager Holly Strablizky Assistant County Attorney Kathy Scriver Deputy Clerk to the Board This being a scheduled Public Hearing,the following items were presented to the Board of County Commissioners for their consideration: Commissioner Updates Commissioner McQueeney provided an update on the new Early Childhood Department that was approved as a concept in the last legislative session.A group had been meeting to figure out which programs, funding streams, and activities would move into the department. Megan Burch,Eagle County Director of Human Services, was chosen to participate. Commissioner Chandler-Henry thanked Commissioner McQueeney for all her work in early childhood. She also reminded folks that this Saturday was National Public Lands Day. It was a chance to feel gratitude about living in Eagle County as it contained a wealth of beauty and natural resources to share with the rest of the world. She also thanked all the health care providers in Eagle County and elsewhere for their work during these uncertain times. Chairman Scherr spoke about the Vail Symposium programs available online and virtually.All the webinars were free. He encouraged people to visit vailsyposium.org for a list of programs. County Manager Updates Jeff Shroll stated that he was scheduled to be at the El Jebel Community Center between 9 a.m. and noon on Friday for"Roaring Fork Fridays." He reminded everyone that county officials would be available for meeting with individuals, organizations, business,or local officials to discuss issues,concerns,or suggestions related to Eagle County. The schedule was available on the county website. Consent Agenda 1. Resolution 2021-073 Approval for VIS-10-18-7947, Variance from Improvement Standards for Lizzie Lode Nicole Mosby, Engineering 2. Resolution 2021-074 Approval of the Site Plan for Freedom Park Recycling Center Ben Gerdes, Engineering 1 09/21/2021 3. Resolution 2021-075 Authorizing Eagle County to Ratify the Post Occupancy Agreement for 800 Castle Drive, Eagle,Colorado Kim Bell Williams, Housing Commissioner Chandler-Henry moved to approve the Consent Agenda for September 21,2021, as presented. Commissioner McQueeney seconded the motion. The vote was declared unanimous. Constituent Input Claire Noble, Program Manager for the Vail Symposium, spoke. She spoke about Eagle County's population, and sadly,the county had lost 30 fellow citizens. The good news was the county vaccination rate was over 74%. She wondered how the county compared to other counties in Colorado. She discovered other areas across America with a similar population had lost 3,4,and 5 times greater numbers. She believed that the decisions being made at the county level were helping to keep Eagle County residents alive. Each of the sitting county commissioners won re-election by more than 60%of the vote. She believed that the voters of Eagle County reaffirmed their faith in their leadership to run this county. On behalf of herself and her family, she thanked the commissioners for their leadership. Krista Keiser of Eagle Vail spoke. She commented on Heath Harmon's comments related to his COVID update last week. She disagreed with Mr. Harmon's statements and believed the best way to protect the youth was to take off the dirty, ineffective masks,give back the parental rights to help children make a medical choice that was best for their family,and be proactive by sharing preventative and early treatments. She believed that false information was being spread and mandates were not the cure. Heather Berquest,Gypsum resident,spoke. She asked about the children that had recently recovered from COVID and were still being subjected to COVID restrictions. Positive tests had resulted in mask mandates,forced quarantine,the canceling of sporting events,and the cause of the public health order put out on August 13. She believed that active immunity resulted when exposure to a disease triggered the immune system to produce antibodies to the disease. Per Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,active immunity was long acting and sometimes life long. She asked that the board consider the findings and consider exemptions for those children who may be immune. Tom Olden from Eagle spoke. He spoke about the essential workers in the community. He believed that the decisions being made were destroying all of the children's future. He believed the government uses vaccines as a fear. The death rate in his industry was much higher than from COVID. It was time that the focus was getting back to business and putting people back to work instead of giving them a golden parachute of false security. He wasn't willing to pick up the tab for everyone wanting to stay at home. Holly Barnum of Avon spoke. She spoke about the mask mandate and believed the mandate should be reevaluated. She supported being healthy and physically active and suggested that everyone stop getting tested, simply take care of themselves if they got sick. She supported vitamins and over-the-counter medications. She did not believe the masks worked for kids and asked that the local government allow parents to decide whether to mask their children. Betsy Barney of Gypsum spoke. She stated that less than 500 children have died of COVID in the nation. Many more children die from other factors.The media had an obligation to stop with the fear mongering. She opposed the mask mandate. Celine Olden of Eagle spoke. She asked about the money received by Eagle County for COVID. She wondered if the story would ever end because there was money behind it. She believed that all the information was being perpetuated,and the federal government was pushing local governments to vaccinate when there was data showing the people have died after receiving the vaccine. She believed the local economy would suffer and people would find another place to live. 2 09/21/2021 Michelle Morgan of Gypsum spoke. She shared a recording of Jodi O'Malley,a strong advocate for patient rights. In the audio Ms. O'Malley spoke about people that had been vaccinated were suffering from adverse reactions. Chairman Scherr closed public comment. Business Item(s) 1. Resolution 2021-076 Declaring September 25 as National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Murder in Eagle County Kaendi Brynestad,Administration/Summit County 5th Judicial District Executive Summary: The National Day of Remembrance for Murder Victims has officially been established as September 25th with a purpose to inspire communities, raise awareness of victims'rights and address unmet needs of survivors. The annual National Day of Remembrance for Murder Victims pays tribute and honors murder victims and their surviving family members. Commissioner McQueeney moved to approve the resolution declaring September 25th as National Day of Rememberance for Victims of Murder in Eagle County. Commissioner Chandler-Henry seconded the motion. The vote was declared unanimous. 2. Resolution 2021-077 Approval of the 4th Supplemental Budget 2021 Jill Klosterman, Finance Executive Summary: Public notice will be completed on September 16th, 2021 and the review and request for these additional appropriations will be made in the September 21st, 2021 public meeting. Ms. Klosterman reviewed the 4th Supplemental to the 2021 adopted budget. She highlighted the revenues and provided additional detail on the projects. Overall there was an increase in revenue by $28.5 million dollars and an increase in expenses by$3.5 million dollars. The biggest increase in revenue were the certificates of participation. The other significant increase was sales tax. The increase of$2.5 million was related to the May, June, and July actual collections. She highlighted a couple of the expenditures. There was a market pay adjustment being presented which would add a 3%market pay adjustment to all staff members in good standing. There were also a couple of facility projects added. She reviewed the other line items and stated that the details of each expenditure could be found on the agenda in BoardDocs. Commissioner Chandler-Henry elaborated on the market rate adjustments. She believed that since there were no pay increases in 2021,the increase kept the county competitive with other organizations. Hollis Dempsey, Director of Human Resources, stated it was not hard to attract good talent and most of the vacancies were easy to fill but there were areas experiencing some challenges. The focus was finding local talent and filling positions. Including all the seasonal vacancies,there were nearly 40 openings. This year they revisited the hiring pay rates and returning pay rates. The seasonal positions were tricky to fill. Ms. Klosterman summarized the fund balance across the organization. She believed the county was still looking good.The$7 million in fund balance would be used to fund housing programs. The capital improvements fund would be used over the next three years to complete the Eagle Valley trail. Commissioner Chandler-Henry stated that it appeared that the fund balance was increasing. Ms. Klosterman stated that the majority of the increase was the debt issuance. She reviewed the health insurance fund balance and indicated that they had been over-collecting and under-spending. She believed the health insurance trends were looking really good. 3 09/21/2021 Commissioner Chander-Henry moved to approve the 4th Supplemental Budget 2021 Commissioner McQueeney seconded the motion. The vote was declared unanimous. Commissioner McQueeney moved to adjourn as the Eagle County Board of County Commissioners and reconvene as the Eagle County Housing and Development Authority. Commissioner Chandler-Henry seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous. Eagle County Housing and Development Authority 1.Approval of the ECHDA 4th Supplemental Budget 2021 Jill Klosterman, Finance Executive Summary: This ECHDA 4th supplemental request to the 2021 budget is being presented to the board for review and approval. Ms. Klosterman stated that some of the housing projects and programs were included in the county's annual audit and budget. There were two properties that the Housing Authority managed but the properties were not part of the Eagle County budget process. Those two properties were Riverview Apartments and Seniors on Broadway. The biggest increase in expenditure was related to Riverview Apartments. She also noted that there was a negative capital balance in the Riverview account because the Housing Authority had made loans to Riverview as part of the refinance back in 2010. It was a function of the 2010 renovation and normal for tax credit funded properties to have capital balances that looked like this. Commissioner Chandler-Henry moved to approve the ECHDA 4th Supplemental Budget for 2021. Commissioner McQueeney seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous. Commissioner McQueeney moved to adjourn as the Eagle County Board of County Commissioners and reconvene as the Eagle County Airport Terminal Authority. Commissioner Chandler-Henry seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous. Eagle County Airport Terminal Authority 1.Agreement between ACME DBA Umbrella and ECAT for On-Call Services Koltin Howard-Talbott Executive Summary: This on-call service agreement is to cover an upcoming terminal roof drain project to capture water from the terminal roof and reduce ice build-up on the commercial ramp.This on-call service agreement will also be utilized for any future on-call work with ACME dba. Umbrella. David Reid, Eagle County Aviation Director, stated that the agreement covered a roof drain project at the airport and covered any on-call services moving forward. They hope to start the project on October 4th. Commissioner Chandler-Henry moved to approve the agreement between ACME DBA Umbrella and ECAT for On-Call Services. Commissioner McQueeney seconded the motion.The vote was unanimous. Commissioner McQueeney moved to adjourn as the Eagle County Airport Terminal Authority and reconvene as the Eagle County Board of County Commissioners. Commissioner Chandler-Henry seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous. 4 09/21/2021 Site Tour 1. Site Visit-Planning File Number ZS-9075-2019,Newby Aggregate Recycling Planning File - Eagle County Room 1. Public Hearing for Planning File Number ZS-9075-2019,Newby Aggregate Recycling Colton Berck,Associate Planner Executive Summary: Application for a consolidated major special use permit for an aggregate construction recycling facility. The permit area consists of roughly 32.4 acres within a 67-acre parcel. Mr. Colton Berck, Eagle County Associate Planner, stated that due to inaccurate public notice, the file was re-noticed for a hearing today. Holly Strablizky,Assistant Eagle County Attorney, reminded the board that they would be considering only what was being presented in today's hearing. Ben Langenfeld, representative for the applicant,presented the application. The Newby property was approximately 67 acres of Resource zoned land. The applicant was proposing an overall permit area of 32.4 acres which included material stockpiles. The applicant believed this was an ideal location for the development of an aggregate recycling facility. An open house was held in November of 2019, informational presentations were given to the Town of Gypsum in May of 2020,and a virtual open house was held in June 2021;there were no members of the public in attendance. He added that in 2020 Pitkin County back instituted an ordinance to encourage recycling of this type of material to maximize the life of their landfill. Scot Hunn, planner for the applicant,reviewed the 2005 comprehensive plan conformances. The Planning Commissioner voted unanimously to approve the variance. Newby Aggregate Recycling(NAR) directly addressed the economic policies of the county by providing a locally based product and service that supported a key component of the area's regional economy. The NAR fully mitigated development related impacts and provided proactive operations, landscape screening,and water resource plans. The proposal avoided development of sensitive areas of the Newby property and would not impact local wildlife. Mr. Langenfeld explained that construction waste recycling concrete and asphalt from demolition of old structures needed to go somewhere. It currently went to the landfill or was illegally dumped. However, most of the material was recyclable. He explained the benefits of recycling. This facility would cut down on road impacts, lower transport costs, and lower CO2 emissions. The NAR would intake demoed asphalt and concrete to be crushed and used for new construction materials. The facility would use existing infrastructure. He showed a map of the area that identified the production area, storage area, and stockpiles. He reviewed the impacts and mitigation. Noise, air/dust,traffic, and visual landscaping were all detailed in the operation plan. The plan also included a hotline, which would also be posted on site outside. He provided some detail with regards to the visual impact mitigation. The asphalt hopper was the tallest piece of equipment on the site at 70 ft. tall. The landscaping plan included a lot of tree planting and vegetation. He added that the SEP would be tied to the Access Permit so all of the vegetation work would be guaranteed one way or another. Mr. Berck presented. He stated that the property was zoned Resource and had not been fully claimed. The time frame for the operation was 18 years and a maximum rate of 150,000 tons per year. The application required a major consolidated Special Use Permit for industrial processing within a Resource zoning. The application required a comprehensive plan exception that was approved by the Planning Commission. There were two referral periods for the application and 11 referral responses were received. There were minimal wildlife concerns. Staff received four letters total,two in support and two in opossion. Odor mitigation was added to the Operation Plan due to some concerns during the Planning Commission's review of the application. There were eight(8) standards of approval, and staff found that the application was in conformance with the standards, some with conditions. 5 09/21/2021 Julie Pranger, Eagle County Staff Engineer, reviewed the zone district standards specific to the processing operations. There was a lot of overlap with other standards required in the Land Use Regulations. Currently,the industrial water right that exists on the property was only valid from May to October. She noted that the application did request year round use. Staff recommended condition number one(1). The facility was outside the floodplain and stream set back from the Eagle River. She indicated that staff found that there was conformance with zone district standards with the addition of condition number one(1)and the variance. She reviewed the adverse impact standard. The trash would be collected at the office trailer and hauled off site weekly. There was plenty of parking on the property. In terms of traffic,the site was accessed via a decommissioned portion of Hwy 6 and there were turnlanes in place. There was already an approved access permit in place with the Town of Gypsum. The noise and vibration were expected to be adequately mitigated and had minimal adverse impacts. The hours of operation were 7 a.m.to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday,and closed on Sunday. There were no night time operations being proposed at this time. There would be no adverse impacts due to smoke and particulate, heat,glare radiation and electrical interference. There were no adverse impacts to water,air, or groundwater.There was no direct discharge to the Eagle River or Spring Creek. The CDPHE Air Pollution Control Division would oversee air quality requirements. Morgan Hill, Eagle County Environmental Health Manager, highlighted the mitigation efforts used to minimize dust and odor. The odors would largely come from the asphalt batch plant. She stated that the state inspectors were really responsive and would ensure that everything was functioning properly. Mr. Berck stated that the wildlife impacts would be minimal. The primary impacts would be the asphalt hopper and material stockpiles. Staff believed that the visual impact was largely mitigated. Ms. Pranger reviewed the site development standards which included addressing off-street parking, loading, landscaping, illumination, and regulations. The application did include a reclamation plan and removing some of the visual impacts and revegetation. All the internal roads met the standards in full. Condition two(2) solidified that the special use through the county expired at the time the Town of Gypsum access permit expired. The application has to cross the railroad in order to get to the site currently,and the railroad crossing agreement was for residential access. Condition three(3)was added requiring that an appropriate railroad crossing agreement be executed. Erosion control standards would be reviewed through the grading permit. Eagle County's road impact fee was applicable, and Condition four(4)related to the time of payment. Mr. Berck reviewed the last standard. Condition five(5)required that prior to issuance of a grading permit,the applicant shall obtain all required local, state, and federal permits.And lastly,because the mining operation was ceasing and was moving to a different use,the bond with the state needed to be closed. Condition six(6)required that the applicant submit a bond in the value of$101,026.00 to Eagle County in a form acceptable to the County Attorney's office. Commissioner McQueeney asked about the turnaround time for the complaint line. Mr. Langenfeld stated that the facility manager would shut down production until the problem was addressed. Commissioner Chandler-Henry asked about the crushing process and the remaining debris. Mr. Langenfeld stated that some debris would need to go to the landfill. There would be a designated area. Commissioner Chandler-Henry asked about the Carol Ann permit and what assurance could people have that the pit would be reclaimed and improved. Ms. Pradger stated that the Carol Ann permit still had an active permit through the state. Staff was working on a modified subdivision improvement agreement which was a way to document the conditions of the bond. Eagle County would have the ability to hire contractors and make sure the reclamation was managed correctly. Ms. Strablinsky stated that the 2039 date was based on the access permit. Ms. Pranger stated that legal access was the standard and the use would not be able to continue if legal access was not in place. Commissioner McQueeney asked about the height limitation.The current limitation was 40 ft. and the applicant was requesting 70 ft. She wondered if the applicant would be willing to consider a 50 ft. high variation. 6 09/21/2021 Mr. Langenfeld stated that they started with 70 ft. and carried it through the application. They may be able to live with a 50 ft. requirement. Chairman Scherr asked about the vegetation and growth plan. Mr. Langenfeld stated that vegetation in the landscaping plan were younger plants. There would be a bit of a lag time for the vegetation to fill out. Commissioner Chandler-Henry asked about illumination during night time activities. Mr. Langenfeld stated that the illumination would be for security and emergency operations only. Commissioner Chandler-Henry asked about the water availability and water rights. Mr. Langenfeld stated that they had water rights. Ms. Strablinsky stated that there was a decree that changed it from irrigation use to industrial use and the industrial use covers all of the uses proposed by the applicant. It was limited to seasonal use,April 1 to October 21. Chairman Scherr opened public comment. Joanna Kerwin spoke. She expressed concern for the lack of public input. She was concerned about the hot asphalt plant across the street from a housing development. She expressed concern for odors,traffic,dust, noise, emissions, and negative impact on the Spring Creek and Stratton Flats area. Derrick Barreta,adjacent property owner, spoke. He believed the proposal had been a series of misinformation. The Planning Commission meeting was delayed considerably. He believed the file was fast tracked. He believed that the wildlife would be affected by the smoke and dust. He spoke about the river corridor and all the gravel pits currently operating in the area. He was concerned about the traffic, noise, and dust. He believed there was more to it than met the eye. The airport was nearby as well. These types of facilities created a lot of fog. He asked the board to consider this carefully. • Lana Bryce, Community Development Director with the Town of Gypsum (TOG), stated that the TOG had always been supportive of mining and recycling in general. One of the conditions of the access permit approval was that aggregate facilities be commenced by October 2nd of this year. Gypsum had been historically good about extending their commitments and understood that the applicant had been going through the approval process with Eagle County. As for reclamation, she wondered if there was a possibility of allowing the TOG to work with the property owner to turn the area into a water reservoir instead of reclaiming it. Paul Bordon spoke. He managed water on the Newbys property. He expressed support for the facility. Deb Dutner, Gypsum resident, spoke. She expressed support for the proposal and believed that all her concerns had been addressed. She did understand there would be some impacts but trusted that any concerns would be addressed by the people running the operation. Kelly Baretta, adjacent property owner, spoke. She had lived on her property for 27 years and had a long history of the area and understood the pros and cons of living on Hwy 6. She expressed concern for the dust, noise,and the air quality. She opposed this type of use for this property and asked the board to reject this plan and find another property better suited. Chairman Scherr closed public comment. Mr. Langenfeld addressed the concerns expressed during public comment. In terms of the location,there was access to industrial water use,topographic benefits, and The access in place. The plan was to provide the best product and meet the potential demand. Their goal was to make this an effective recycling facility so having all the tools in the tool box was important. There had been a long process of stakeholder engagement and attempts to reach out to people in many different ways. They had been working aggressively to meet the October 2nd date for the access permit. He responded to the referral letter from the TOG. The TOG requested a 10-year limit on the land use, a 10 ft. fisherman's access easement on the south bank of the Eagle River,and possible trail links. He believed they were eager to facilitate the request wherever possible. They said"yes"to a fishing easement and"yes"to potential trails across Mr.Newby's property. He expected that these benefits would be incorporated in the future. Commissioner McQueeney wondered if the board had some flexibility on the reclamation. Mr. Langenfeld stated that there was a reclamation plan in place. There was nothing in the proposal that precluded new uses for the property, so a water reservoir was a possibility. 7 09/21/2021 Ms. Strablinsky stated that after reviewing the staff report she believed that other uses could be considered, but the development agreement ensured that the county had the backup to enforce reclamation and to see that the property was brought back to its original state. She believed there was some flexibility. Commissioner Chandler-Henry asked about the standard most applicable to the TOG's belief that the proposal did not meet with their Master Plan. Mr. Berck stated that the standard most applicable would be the standard that related to surrounding uses. Chairman Scherr asked about the hours for night time operations that were outlined in the special use permit. Ms. Pranger stated that the warm up and cool down hours of the equipment were captured in the hours of operation. Chairman Scherr asked if any violations would go through the state. Mr. Langenfeld stated that if the operations were found in violation of their air permit,the state would get involved. There was also a dust standard that was enforced by a production limit. If someone were to call and complain,the enforcement agency would ask to see all the records and do a permit check. Chairman Scherr asked about the public notification. Mr. Berck stated that all public comments were visible on the county website. Mr. Langenfeld requested that the special use permit be connected to an active access permit and not the expiration date and that any access permit discussions stay with the TOG. Commissioner McQueeney stated that she would like the 50 ft. height limit reflected somewhere. When she considers the standards and impacts to the neighbors,she believed there were a number of things put in place to address noise and dust. The conditions allowed compliance with the standards. • Commissioner Chandler-Henry believed that the TOG had some control with their access permit. She believed it was a good location as it had not yet been reclaimed. The conditions allowed for remedies to any concerns. Chairman Scherr believed that this looked like a sound proposal and was under the umbrella of the state. He believed it met the standards and he was prepared to approve. Ms. Strablinsky identified some changes to Condition one(1)and two(2). Commissioner McQueeney moved to approve file no. ZS-9075, incorporating staff's findings and recommended conditions, including the 50 ft. height limitation, and the special access permit as described because this application, as conditioned, meets the standard approval for a Special Use Permit. Commissioner Chandler-Henry seconded the motion. The vote was declared unanimous. pi There beingno further busines•!b; ''^-'�°.,d,the meetingwas until September 28, 2021. -• adjournedP o Attes �°RAbO I I 'C / erk to the Board airman 8 09/21/2021