Unable to come to terms over road improvements, La Plata County planning staff recommends denial of a land-use permit for the King II Coal Mine, whose application is scheduled for La Plata County Planning Commission review Wednesday.

The mine, which opened in 2007 in Hay Gulch as an extension of King I, is owned by Mexico-based cement producers Grupos Cementos de Chihuahua.

A report from planning staff cites the company’s wear on County Road 120, which accesses the mine, as the reason for denying the permit.

“Absent an executed road-improvement agreement that includes a schedule of road improvements with specific dates by which to complete construction, the proposed project fails to promote responsible development while minimizing potential impacts to the environment and local residents,” the planners wrote to the Planning Commission.

Vocal opposition to GCC’s lack of a permit and truck traffic has come from residents of County Road 120 throughout the county’s discussions on the permit. At a meeting last fall, resident Julie McCue noted that GCC had promised road paving by May 2015, but it hadn’t happened by the time she made her comments to planners in October.

Planning Department staff members were not available to comment, but have previously said they spoke daily with mine officials in an attempt to come to terms. GCC Energy Vice President Trent Peterson did not return a call.

The Planning Commission meets at 6 p.m. Wednesday in the county board room at 1101 East Second Avenue. The board will decide whether to recommend approval or denial of the permit to the La Plata County Commission.

Because King II is located on federal land in Hesperus, the county did not require a permit when the mine opened, but it reversed that stance when GCC made plans to expand.

jpace@durangoherald.com