Conflict flares up over land use near Crevasse Moraine trails

WASILLA — Users of a popular local trail system are worried about plans to expand the Mat-Su Borough landfill — concerns borough officials say are unfounded.

The Crevasse Moraine trail system is among the more popular in the Mat-Su. It’s sprung up over the years on property borough officials say has been designated for use since the late 1980s for expansion of the local landfill. The trail system consists of 12 numbered trails and a trailhead off of Loma Prieta Drive. It’s frequently included with the nearby Matanuska Greenbelt hiking system. The two systems connect via the Long Lake loop trail.

Borough officials are now seeking an Interim Materials District — a type of land use change — covering four parcels and the entire Crevasse-Moraine system. The district would allow contractors to remove gravel from borough-owned property for sale. A contractor would remove 770,000 cubic yard of gravel by about the year 2020, according to the application materials.

A public hearing before the borough planning commission will take place April 4 at 6 p.m. in the borough assembly chambers.

The deadline for written comments is Monday, and comments may be submitted in writing via e-mail to mwhisenhunt@matsugov.us.

Neighborhood opposition

Locals who use the trails and live nearby are not pleased with the proposal. About a dozen neighborhood residents and trails users gathered on Thursday for an informal press conference and rally, taking time to talk with a newspaper reporter and taking a television crew on a tour of the trails.

Amy Vanderschrier said she frequently hikes at Crevasse Moraine, and thinks new development in the area doesn’t fit with the unique character of the trails, which sit conveniently wedged in a hilly forest between Palmer and Wasilla.

“This is the most beautiful place,” Vanderschrier said.

Joe Sylvia with the Mat-Su Hikers Facebook page said the trails at Crevasse Moraine are at the heart of a network connecting vast swaths of the Palmer-Wasilla area.

“It’s truly in the middle of everything,” he said.

Neighborhood residents said they’re concerned about the possibility of increased dust pollution from the operation and think it would have a negative impact on their homes.

“Our property values are probably going to go down,” said Tom Reber, who lives just down the street from the trails.

Vanderschreier said the idea that the trails could be compromised or lose their character is scary.

“This is heartbreaking,” she said of the proposal. “This is one of my favorite places to go.”

Colony High Cross Country coach Rhona Knopp says her team occasionally uses the Crevasse Moraine trails for training, in part because trail space in the borough’s core area is limited.

“Travelling far away up to Hatcher Pass is nice, but it’s not really feasible,” she said. “The Crevasse Moraine and the Matanuska Greenbelt trails are a gem for our entire community.”

The Mat-Su Running Club — Knopp is also a member — uses the Crevasse Moraine trails, and some concern about the trails has been circulating among members of that group. While she was concerned, Knopp said she was focused on learning the particulars before making a judgment about the plans. For example, she hopes the borough will maintain a balance of opening new lands for trail use in the borough core as hiking trails are turned into landfill areas. The trails have always been at the borough’s discretion, Knopp said.

“My concern is that all users have our facts so we don’t jump to any fast conclusions,” she said. “We want to voice our concerns, but I think we all need to be careful and work together with our borough.”

Officials say concerns unwarranted

Borough officials have sought a balance between the trails and landfill expansion. In 2014, consultants CH2MHill provided a plan that would have cut through the heart of the Crevasse Moraine trail system, but borough officials asked for the impact to be lessened, and eventually came up with a plan to dig out individual cells as needed, according to Mat-Su Solid Waste Director Butch Shapiro. The sections with the densest trails won’t be used for landfill cells for decades, he said.

“The intent isn’t that we’re going to come in here and start moonscaping the place,” Shapiro said.

By setting up an interim materials district and allowing a contractor to come in and remove the gravel one piece at a time, officials hope to avoid using taxpayer funds to cover the removal for the cells.

The new interim materials district won’t yet extend into the heart of the trail system, Shapiro said. That collision will eventually happen, but not for at least 40 years — if not longer, he said. Landfill officials are also hoping that recycling diversion will slow the rate at which landfill cells are used up, Shapiro said.

At the same time, old cells, like cell 2A, closed in 2015, will transition back into recreational use once reclamation is completed, creating more uniform terrain, and potential use as wheelchair-accessible trails, Shapiro said. In the distant future, woods will eventually reclaim the old cells again, Shapiro said.

That may come as small consolation to a hard core of volunteers that have worked to improve the trails, said Community Director Eric Phillips.

“It would not be positive to lose trail improvements that volunteers have put their time into, but in the grand scheme of things that land has been set aside for landfill use,” he said. “Trails are not the proscribed use for that land.”

Contact reporter Brian O’Connor at 352-2270 or brian.oconnor@frontiersman.com