County approves Freeport McMoRan rezoning for sulfuric‑acid transload site; company forecasts about 30 truck trips shifted
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Summary
The board approved REZ946‑25 to rezone parcels along the railroad in Ashurst to manufacturing for a Freeport McMoRan sulfuric‑acid transload operation. Freeport's representative described a modest, daytime facility and estimated the project could remove about 30 truck trips per day from some town streets.
Planning and Zoning staff opened a public hearing on REZ946‑25, a request from Freeport McMoRan to rezone a strip of three parcels along the Arizona Eastern Railroad in Ashurst from general land use to manufacturing for truck offloading. A Freeport representative described a modest transload facility comprised of mobile equipment to transfer sulfuric acid between railcars and carrier trucks and said the operation would be limited to daytime hours.
Freeport's representative said the project could "remove those more eastbound trucks, reduce them significantly," and, when pressed about quantities, estimated "So, 30, about 30 trucks a day on average." Board members asked technical questions about traffic patterns and local lighting at the intersection; a supervisor encouraged well‑lit facilities for safety. Freeport said it would provide additional transportation data from its transportation team and hold community open‑house events later in the quarter.
After discussion the board moved to approve the rezoning from general land use to manufacturing for truck offloading. The motion passed without recorded opposition; staff noted no public opposition had been received in advance of the hearing. The board asked the company to follow up with more precise traffic data and to coordinate community outreach.