The concrete batch plant proposal northwest of Parker was
unanimously voted down Thursday night by the Douglas Board of
County Commissioners.

After five hours of public debate in front of 200 residents, the
commissioners said the plant and it’s truck traffic would not fit
with surrounding residential, office and commercial development in
the Cottonwood/Stonegate area.

Neighboring developer Scott Carlson, who plans to build hundreds
of thousands of square feet of residential, office, retail and
commercial development on 225 acres north of the proposal, said a
batch plant would result in a $36 million loss in development value
over 30 years in the area.

Carlson hired financial experts from THK Associates to determine
future land values with and without the plant in the
corridor.

Later in the hearing, Carlson said the issue was not about him
but about the existing and future residents in the area.

Property owner Jack Fox and LaFarge West Inc.’s John Ware said
that a similar concrete plant a quarter of a mile from western
Highlands Ranch neighborhoods did not have the financial impact or
complaints that Parker-area residents were concerned about with the
new proposal.

As one of the fastest-growing areas in the nation, Douglas
County needs concrete, Fox said early in the hearing. LaFarge
worked with county planners and changed many aspects of the plan,
such as building a $3 million, 60-foot tall warehouse around the
plant and offering to use treated wastewater to make the concrete.
Douglas County planners recommended that the permit be approved,
noting that LaFarge would have to renew the permit
annually.

About 50 residents spoke, nearly all in opposition to the
permit. Several residents showed a video comparing existing batch
plants along the Front Range and the proposed site.

The few who spoke in favor of the permit said the dust, noise
and pollution controls were enough to extend the landowner’s right
to build the industrial plant by the highway. A LaFarge truck
driver told commissioners about the company’s regular safety
classes.

The commissioners said they were disappointed with the conduct
of many people who participated in the public process, saying they
acted with animosity.

The past month, nearby landowners allegedly threatened the
commissioners and sent derogatory messages, including promises to
recall commissioner Mike Maxwell if the proposal passed.

Planning commissioners said at the September and November public
hearings they had never seen such disrespectful behavior at a
public hearing, where residents spoke out, applauded and
jeered.

“I’m shocked. I’ve been called everything but a commissioner,”
Commissioner Melanie Worley said to an emotional crowd before she
announced that she would vote against the permit. “I take it to
heart that you all are my boss. I ask you, what type of boss are
you? … The government is not the enemy, we are on your
side.”

LaFarge West, Inc. did a good job of trying to reduce pollution,
noise, dust and other impacts the plant would have created, said
commissioner Jim Sullivan. But truck traffic on Parker House and
Jordan roads would have been too dangerous in the middle of
residential and retail areas.

“I have to look at not only what’s there today, but also what’s
coming. It took two years to revise the master plan, and the E-470
corridor is where the county foresees high-density residential
housing,” Sullivan said. “The school district has been telling us
that only 20 percent of their teachers can live here.”

Sullivan deflected allegations that he had personal interests or
relationships with developers. He said that the planning
commission’s split vote made the decision very difficult, and that
his decision was not influenced by the Parker town council’s
opposition to the proposal.

Douglas County Attorney Mark Hannen will draft a resolution for
commissioners to approve next week that states the reasons why the
batch plant permit proposal was turned down, Hannen said.

When asked whether LaFarge would sue the county, Ware said,
“that’s not how we do business,” and that LaFarge respects the
decision of the commissioners. LaFarge will begin looking for
another site.

LaFarge has not had a plant turned down in the region in at
least a couple years, Ware said. LaFarge has a temporary permit to
operate the plant north of Cottonwood on Jordan Road near Dove
Ridge.

Fox declined to comment on the vote, but after the hearing he
told his attorney David Moore to keep his files. Moore said he
would, in case LaFarge finds another site in Douglas County.