Providence planning commission sends proposed temporary gravel-pit rules to public hearing

The Providence Planning Commission voted to set a public hearing on proposed land-use code language to allow temporary gravel extraction tied to subdivisions and development projects, saying staff should return after additional review with the city attorney and city engineer.

The change would permit on-site excavation for projects that need material for roads and infrastructure while imposing requirements such as a site-specific traffic plan, a business plan, annual review, and reclamation and slope-stability documentation. Commission members raised concerns about how the proposal interacts with recently passed state extraction legislation and whether a conditional-use pathway could enable expansion of pits beyond what the city intends.

Adam, a city staff member presenting the draft, said the city intends to require both a business plan and a traffic plan specific to each pit, and that the permit would be subject to annual review. "Whatever we do, we don't want to give them the idea that they can use this new state code and then just expand, expand, expand," he said, citing concern about state law provisions that allow expansion under certain conditions.