Gravel extraction ordinance fails to pass after Mayor vetoes passage.

After over a year of the Matanuska Susitna Borough (MSB) Assembly trying to Ordinance 23-033, the gravel extraction ordinance that would have increased the allowable amount of earth materials to be extracted from 2,000 cubic yards to 10,000 cubic yards, without going through a public permitting process, the controversial gravel extraction ordinance has been vetoed down.

For months, the ordinance had faced severe opposition from Borough residents who had long been against the ordinance. Most of those who have spoken in opposition at previous Assembly meetings were upset that the ordinance would ease development procedures occurring within their neighborhoods, allow for more gravel pits in their neighborhoods, bringing with it increased noise and traffic.

MSB Assembly member Mokie Tew, who drafted the ordinance, has said in the past that the ordinance was about economic growth and development. Meanwhile many questioned his true intentions as he had owned gravel pits in the past, though in past meetings, Assembly Member Tew reiterated that he was not going to re-open any of his gravel pits.

The ordinance was pulled earlier this year by Assemblyman Tew, who told the assembly at the time that he would take the legislation back to the drawing board, and would add resolutions proposed by other assembly members to the ordinance.

It was reintroduced and had established a registration process and basic standards for operations for 2,001 to 10,000 cubic yards. Operations that would not meet the standards or exceed the 10,000 cubic yard limit would be required to obtain an Administrative or Conditional Use Permit.

Within the ordinance, there would need to be a small gravel registration filed that would not require public notification and would need to be approved by the MSB Planning Director. It was the lack of public notification or public hearings that had many residents upset

“I am really tired of addressing this gravel ordinance. It started out with no identified problem that needed fixing. We’re here tonight again with a proposed registration ordinance that fixes nothing, increases the yardage, and has no public notification, and much less Borough monitoring tools,” said Donna Massey of Trapper Creek said at last month’s MSB Assembly meeting.

Massey vocalized complaints that have been repeated for months, specifically that the proposed ordinance eliminates public notification or comment.

At the last MSB Assembly meeting, an amendment had been put for to address adding the public hearing and comment to the ordinance, but was voted down.

During the MSB Assembly meeting on Tuesday evening, another round of opponents to the ordinance spoke in-person and via telephone, many expressing frustration that the ordinance is still being debated and losing faith in the Assembly.

“The code that is working should be left in place,” said Ruth Wood of Talkeetna. “You’re not listening to your constituents.”

“It is long past the time that this should have been done, dead and buried. This feels underhanded and deceitful,” said Dan Tucker, who added that there have been too many amendments made to the ordinance, and that signals that something is wrong with the ordinance.

Jesse Sumner, who resigned from the MSB Assembly earlier this year after being elected as a state representative, came out to speak in favor of the ordinance, saying that if the permitting process were to become too restrictive, it would be more likely people will pull out enormous amounts of gravel. “They won’t care about the land.” He also said that eliminating the permit process would benefit the development of the Mat Su Borough.

“If you got rid of permitting process altogether, you’d take away the hills and speed up development of the Borough.”

When the MSB Assembly began discussion of the ordinance, Assembly member Stephanie Nowers made a motion to postpone indefinitely the ordinance, which would have killed the bill. Her motion was defeated, with Assembly members Nowers, Tim Hale, and Dee McKee voting to kill the bill, while Rob Yundt, Dimitri Fonov via phone, Ron Bernier, and Mokie Tews, who drafted the ordinance, voted to not kill the bill.

After additional amendments, and further discussion, including an amendment to remove ‘The extraction site shall not be within one-half mile of any other small gravel extraction site registered under this section,’ a key component to the ordinance.

“I do think it (the ½ mile between gravel pit sites) blocks other potential, good development,” said Assemblyman Fonov, who proposed the amendment, and argued that it prevents equal rights to a neighbor who want to extract their own material, but cannot if someone is already doing the same.

“We don’t do that to stores, or other businesses, we shouldn’t do that here.”

Other Assembly members were swift in their opposition to the amendment, including Assemblyman Hale, who said:

“Not only we have removed public input, now it can have 3 consecutive properties do the same thing? No, absolutely no.”

Deputy Mayor Yundt, who originally inserted the ½ mile limit, also opposed the amendment, saying “I think it’s the safest thing to do (to leave the ½ mile in). I am worried about taking it down to zero.”

Ultimately that amendment failed 5-2.

When it came time to vote, the MSB Assembly voted as it had in previous attempts, the ordinance passed 4-3, with Assembly members Nowers, McKee, and Hale voting in opposition of the ordinance.

However, in an unexpected move, MSB Mayor Edna DeVries vetoed the passage of the ordinance, saying it is bad policy, a move that was applauded by the audience.

Earlier in the meeting, several opponents to the ordinance urged Mayor DeVries to veto the ordinance if needed.

“Mayor, please, please, please exercise your veto authority because somebody has to care about the constituents.”

A vote was taken to override the veto, or to postpone that vote until the next meeting. The vote to override the veto failed, meaning the ordinance fails.

The next MSB Assembly meeting will be held on June 20 at the MSB Borough Chambers in Palmer.