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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Guide Weather Subscribe Contact Us March 11, 2005 Landowners fuming over an additional quarry slated for Dead Indian road By Robert Plain Ashland Daily Tidings Several residents of Dead Indian Memorial Road are disturbed at the possibility of another rock quarry on their road. Orville Hector | Ashland Daily Tidings Trucks like this one pass by the Ashland Airport frequently, heading to Quality Rock Products along Dead Indian Memorial Road. Tom Kane and Laurel Miller, both residents of the scenic road that leads to the popular lakes region, said that if J.G. Dauenhauer is allowed by Jackson County to locate an aggregate rock quarry on his land here, it would not only affect traffic but would also hinder the quality of life they currently enjoy living here. "There are maybe 25 curves in that road," Kane said. "This project will result in many additional trucks traveling up this road and then again downhill, fully loaded. I anticipate people getting frustrated and trying to pass them. I'm not sure it's safe to drive here." Kane doesn't feel Dead Indian Memorial Road is built for the large trucks that transport crushed rock from quarry to building site. However, Dauenhauer, who owns 5,000 acres here, said this road used to receive more traffic than what his proposed business would create back in the days when log trucks used to travel this road. "Dead Indian was built for this kind of traffic," he said. "20 years ago it had a lot more traffic than this will create." Dauenhauer said he understands there is often strong opposition to business ventures such as this one but he said the state has encouraged him to get his land zoned for this purpose because of the need for crushed rock in development projects, coupled with the fact that the more developed an area becomes, the stronger the opposition to such a project gets. "The state feels we've got to have rocks for future development and this is where the rocks are," he said. "We need more aggregate for highways, roads and developments." He added that property value may be just as much a concern as are the quality of life issue, saying, "I think, sure, they feel this will diminish the value of their property." Kane and Miller both said, however, that there is far more at stake than just the value of their homes. "When I'm up on Grizzly Peak I don't want to look down at a rock pit," said Miller, who has owned property here for two years but has been living at it for only 30 days. "There are bald eagles that fly through here. It is just pristine. This is not just about property values." Miller was also concerned that the proposed business would prevent her from hearing the creek that flows by her house. Dauenhauer said rock crushing would only happen a few days out of the year. "The rest of the time it will just be loaded up and hauled out," he said. Dauenhauer said he made request to the county for four areas to mine rock from on his land. He said he will only develop one of these areas at a time and that he will not be utilizing more than one area at a time. He said the area he anticipates starting with would not be visible from the road. He said one of the future sites may be visible from the road but only for a brief moment. On March 21, some of these issues will be addressed at a Jackson County hearing that could approve the application that Dauenhauer filed in April 2002. At that time, the application was remanded to the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals. LUBA found six assignments of error with the project, including, but not limited to, the fact that the proposed "sites are undefined on the property, thus making it difficult for the county to regulate" and that the project "fails to mitigate measures regarding sound and appearance." There is also a question as to whether or not the project will adversely affect deer and elk habitat. Dauenhauer said that because he and his lawyer only received the list of LUBA concerns last week, they may not be prepared for the hearing a week from Monday. He said they are looking into the possibility of postponing the hearing. Staff writer Robert Plain can be reached at 482-3456 x 3040 or [email protected]. DailyTidings.com Home Page Archives | Revels | Classifieds | Real Estate Guide | Weather | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2005 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Slippers Women's & Men's Slippers Ceramic Piggy Banks heloc libor rate Calenders 2005 Calender 2005 Accelerate Weightloss Products Memory Foam Mattress afsa home equity loans teleconferencing W2 Forms Homeschooling Tatoos student loans Matchmaking & Dating Scripts African Safari Conference Calls - $50/Month Security Systems student loan consolidation diamonds Currancy Exchange Online Casinos Community Fasa Student Loans Tatoo Click Here Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams