The Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly’s plan for a materials site to supply one of two possible north road extensions was put on hold before the plan could even be introduced.
Brent Johnson communicated what happened during the January 6 Finance Committee report.
Johnson: “There’s been ongoing discussions and Apache was going to be building a road and they were desiring access to this gravel and for them to have access to this gravel and for them to have access to this gravel we needed to get a road built to the materials site but as it’s turned out, Apache has not yet decided to build the road and so the timing of this all is coming to the point that it’s best for us not to do this now. Apache has some other sources, they may yet get this gravel but until they actually decide to build this road this is going to be put off for a while.”
Johnson stated was another factor was the categorical exclusion which the borough applied for but has not been granted.
Without that categorical exclusion, the $5 million in federal funding earmarked for the proposed North Road extension cannot be used to further the project.
Apache is also actively seeking a core application for the extension of the road. Lisa Parker with Apache said the plan submitted includes a 7.5 mile gravel extension of the Spur Highway for oil and gas exploration.