Superior Offers Gravel Permit Tips

BY SANDY LENDER

JJeff Kresnak’s three-year trial ended successfully May 5, 2015, when the Danby Township Board of Trustees voted unanimously to approve his company’s special use permit request. That’s not an everyday occurrence for would-be stone, sand and gravel providers. Here’s how the president of Superior Asphalt Inc., Grand Rapids, Michigan, Superior Offers Gravel Permit Tips garnered a special use permit to operate a gravel pit on a 243-acre site south of Portland, Michigan. First, Kresnak shared that the planning commission spent over 14 months reviewing and studying the proposal his team had submitted. Of course, there were opponents, and Kresnak said one fellow in Portland

ABOVE: The beauty of the Portland Gravel Pit site matters to Superior Asphalt’s Jeff Kresnak. He stated, “We’re here to leave a gorgeous product when we’re done.” Here you can see one of the windmills Kresnak installs for more than aesthetics. “When we get to a clay vein or reach our allowed depth of 40 feet of water, I install a windmill.” The air from the windmill keeps trout in the pond healthy and water clean. RIGHT TOP & MIDDLE: The pit produces topsoil, sand and gravel for both Superior Asphalt projects and for customers, who can be loaded directly from piles. RIGHT BOTTOM: Only 25% of the 243-acre site will be mined at a time. The rest remains farmland for crops and cattle, and 13 acres of trees planted to form a natural, permanent barrier between operations and a nearby subdivision. All photos courtesy of Superior Asphalt

Kresnak has displayed a roller from 1931 and a scraper from 1910 near the entrance to the Portland Gravel Pit. The pieces give the sense of history and cleanliness from the get-go.

LEFT: Notice that alongside the gravel pit scale, you can see the corn crop growing on a portion of the 243-acre site. RIGHT: The McCloskey screen used at the Portland site is an S190, 5 by 20 screen deck with a 100-foot stacker, and a 621, 4 by 4 trommel, all used to screen topsoil.

A Cat excavator loads sand into a haul truck near the retaining pond.

had done much research to learn the talking points for preventing the opening of a new gravel pit. Luckily for the local economy, Kresnak and team are not only familiar with those talking points but are also well-versed in how to counteract fear and communicate reality.

Kresnak put a positive spin on the ordeal, telling the Lansing State Journal, “The residents of Danby Township should feel fortunate to have the people on this planning commission because they have worked harder on this than any other planning commission that I have seen.”

But Kresnak’s modus operandi is more than positive spin. He believes in protecting the planet. He wants to learn more about using recycled plastics in asphalt mix designs, wants to plan ahead to help the neighbors in his community, and wants to share his experience to help members of the industry engage in best climate stewardship practices.

For example, Kresnak encouraged paving the site. Pave the driveway, highly trafficked roadways and the scale area. This not only keeps dust down to help satisfy your Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) permit, but it also keeps the neighbors from experiencing large amounts of drifting dust.

He also recommended looking into the aesthetics of the site, saying, “Have it nice.” For the Portland gravel pit, he purchased a 10-ton roller manufactured in 1931 and a 1910 grader to display near the entrance. “For about five grand, I made the entrance look like a museum.”

The clean look begins before operations do with planning for the end of operations. “There’s never a ‘right’ time to be a good neighbor,” Kresnak said. “You should always be a good neighbor. Build a better track record each day. Do your reclamation right for all our sakes. We’re here to leave a gorgeous product when we’re done.”

The pictures of the Portland gravel pit, now in operation, tell the story.