EMMETT, Idaho — Gem County commissioners unanimously upheld approval of the Premier Spring Creek South gravel pit project Tuesday afternoon, rejecting an appeal from neighbors who argued there was not enough evidence to support the permit.
The proposed gravel pit would be located approximately five miles northeast of Emmett near the intersection of Spring Creek Road and State Highway 52. The original project covered 223 acres but was voluntarily reduced to roughly 61 acres — about 21% of the total property — after Premier Aggregates removed Phase 2 in response to comments from appellants, Idaho Fish and Game, and other agencies.
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The project was originally approved by the Gem County Planning and Zoning Commission in January following two nights of hearings, testimony, and deliberation. Shad and Kim Larson, represented by attorney Sebastian Griffin, appealed that approval before county commissioners Tuesday, asking the board to either reverse the decision and deny the application outright or remand it back to planning and zoning for further proceedings.
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Commissioners went through each of the nine required findings Tuesday afternoon for the special use permit before voting unanimously to uphold the project's approval. The board reviewed the record for whether the planning and zoning commission's decision was supported by substantial evidence.
Neighbors have spent months raising concerns about the project, including traffic impacts, dust, noise and blasting near Black Canyon Reservoir.
"You look at the area right by Black Canyon Reservoir, one of the most beautiful recreational areas in Gem County for sure, if not the state, is now going to have a blasting on a mineral extraction site," Griffin said.
Griffin said the decision felt like an injustice to his clients, pointing to what he described as a shift in the character of the area.
"This area that has been traditionally, and truly traditionally, been agricultural... is now going to become industrial and commercial for commercial extraction for Premier Aggregates," Griffin said.
Griffin added the lack of required studies was a central concern throughout the appeal.
"We don't know for sure any of the impacts because studies weren't done," Griffin said.
During deliberations, commissioners addressed each of the nine findings in turn. On the question of public health, safety, and welfare, commissioners noted that moving the operation closer to Highway 52 mitigated safety concerns along Spring Creek Road, and that letters from the Idaho Transportation Department, the Bureau of Reclamation, and DEQ were required as conditions of approval.
ITD submitted a letter stating it had no issue with the intersection at Spring Creek Road and Highway 52.
On traffic, commissioners noted that the new entrance location — closer to Highway 52 — would reduce the distance trucks must travel on the steep stretch of Spring Creek Road, improving safety. The traffic finding carried eight specific conditions of approval, including a road maintenance agreement with Gem County and requirements governing the location of the gate and truck staging. The road supervisor required that no trucks be parked on Spring Creek Road waiting to enter the facility, and road improvements of approximately 1,000 feet from Highway 52 up Spring Creek Road — up to 100 feet wide — were included as conditions.
On compatibility with adjacent lands, commissioners cited the elimination of Phase 2 as creating a significant buffer between operations and homes to the east, along with berming on the west side of the site.
On noise, dust, and unsightliness, commissioners noted that the key legal standard was whether effects would be unreasonable — not whether effects would exist at all.
"There will be some effects of having a mining operation; there always are, and you can't... I wouldn't sit here and say that there are no effects. The key word in this finding is unreasonably," Commissioner Chairman Kirk Wille said.
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Commissioners also noted that blasting hours were negotiated as part of the conditions, including restrictions tied to Idaho Fish and Game's request regarding fish in the area. Hours of operation were also subject to conditions developed through discussion between the applicant, zoning staff, and the commission.
On consistency with the zoning ordinance, commissioners noted that mineral extraction has been occurring in the area since the 1970s and that Gem County's A1 zoning allows mineral extraction as long as conditions of approval can be met.
District 3 Commissioner Mark Rekow said the activity in the area is not new.
"This has been going on for years and years and years," Rekow said.
On groundwater and surface water, commissioners noted the operation would be largely dry, with water used only for dust control. Conditions of approval require the applicant to obtain a letter from the Army Corps of Engineers regarding any disturbance within 1,000 feet of the centerline of Spring Creek, a letter from the Bureau of Reclamation regarding dam safety, and a well mitigation condition — identified as condition 26 in the record.
Commissioners also addressed two procedural issues raised on appeal. On the question of whether the planning and zoning commission improperly excluded written materials submitted during public testimony, Wille said that while written exhibits were not accepted, members of the public were allowed to present the information verbally, and that information entered the record through oral testimony.
On the question of a notice typo that listed the permit as a Class 1 rather than a Class 3, commissioners found no due process error — noting that the notice contained all information pertinent to a Class 3 permit, including references to crushing and blasting, and that the applicant's representative openly acknowledged the typo was his error.
After the vote, Griffin said he believed the record at minimum warranted sending the project back for further review.
"A traffic study at minimum could have been requested to be conducted to show what's going to be the actual impacts of this project specifically, because we don't know that," Griffin said.
Griffin said the absence of formal studies left commissioners making decisions based on incomplete information.
"I think it's very difficult to be able to say we know exactly the impacts of traffic, we know the impacts of hazards, we know the impacts of dust when those studies have been conducted," Griffin said. "We're going off of a hunch of what could come, and that's sufficient because we think we've mitigated what we don't know. That's unfortunate."
Griffin said he hopes future applications of this kind are held to a higher standard.
Premier Aggregates, a local Gem County company, told Idaho News 6 off camera that they are pleased with the decision, grateful for the time commissioners put into the deliberations, and excited to move forward with the project.
A written decision consistent with the board's findings will be prepared for the board's review, signature, and publication at a later date.
"I'm sure this won't be the end of this, uh, and we'll see where we go from here," Griffin said.
