Allard Contractors is getting another chance to expand its operation on Keystone Avenue.
Mission council advanced the application to build a ready mix concrete plant on the property to a public hearing June 17. It was originally scheduled for the first week of June, but councillors wanted more time to collect information and visit similar sites before hearing from the public.
The family-owned company first approached the district about building a ready mix concrete plant on site in 1995. This plant combines various ingredients needed to make concrete except water. When the material is loaded into a truck, it is mixed with water and transported to the work site. According to a district staff report, the application was withdrawn two years later when information needed to move it forward was not received.
Jim Allard, Allard Contractors Ltd.’s vice president, applied for a rezoning on the property again in 2001 and 2005. He faced two public hearing and opposition from nearby residents. Council denied both applications.
Currently the Allard gravel pit has permits to crush, sort, screen, wash and stockpile materials. The expansion would add resource processing and manufacturing to its uses.
Opponents to the growth raised concerns about noise and traffic in the area as well as the region’s water supply.
Since Allard’s last application, there have been numerous changes, including the development of codes of practice by the B.C. ministry of environment which sets out standards for dust control, water and monitoring.
Now that this is clearly spelled out, it’s easy for a business like this to monitor, said Mike Younie, Mission’s director of planning.
He also noted there are existing water licenses and wells on the property and no additional sources are required. In fact, he said it’s in the operator’s best interest to capture both storm and wash water and recycle as much as possible.
The noise would be regulated by the hours of operation, proposed to be Monday to Friday from 7 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. during the winter, and 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the summer as well as half a day on Saturday.
While the proposal has received opposition in the past, not everyone is against it.
Blair McLeod, who lives about a mile away from the Keystone Avenue business, says the pit operations have never bothered him, nor has the truck traffic coming from the site.
“The only thing that bothers us are the cars that pass the trucks,” said McLeod who has lived in the area since 1987. “Gravel trucks don’t go racing by.”
Having a plant like this is a benefit to a growing community like Mission as it provides jobs and competitive costs for the product, said Coun. Dave Hensman.
The June 17 public hearing begins at 6 p.m. at municipal hall.
