This post is unedited from the 2018 election to show Barry Wilson stated update on all happenings within District 2. Barry is seeking an update from Burnco (formerly Bestway) in 2022.
The Bestway Concrete Company is expanding and adding a new gravel pit on the undeveloped land on the southeast corner of HW-392 and CR-13 adjacent to their current operations (see map below).
The current Bestway operations are within the Town of Windsor. The expansion is an open pit mine (gravel pit) approved by Weld County. No approval was needed by the Town of Windsor because the section of land that will be mined has not been annexed into the Town of Windsor.
Map Legend (click on image to enlarge):
Yellow: Town of Windsor
White: Unincorporated Weld/Larimer County
Reservoirs in Bestway operations are no longer accurate on map.
I discussed this expansion with Scott Ballstadt, Windsor’s Chief Planner, on March 1, 2018.
On Thursday, March 22, 2018 I met with Mark Johnson of BestWay Concrete Company, now a BURNCO Company. We discussed Bestway operations, expansion plan, timeline, and what the site will look like when they are complete. Mark was a gracious host and answered all my questions in detail. We conducted our meeting in his truck while we toured the entire facility. Mark genuinely wants to be a good neighbor and I believe he has been (I’ve lived here for 18-years). If residents have concerns, he asked me to bring them to his attention.
There are 3 primary operations at the site:
- Open Pit Mine (Gravel Pit)
- Concrete Plant
- Truck Maintenance Building
The Concrete Plant as been at this location since 1983. It was here long before the residents. It will remain after mining operations are complete. Bestway owns and operates about a dozen gravel pits and about a dozen concrete plants across the front range.
Bestway plans to begin mining the 20-acre area (labeled Expansion on the map) in April 2018 and they have 3 years to finish mining that area once they begin. They will construct berms around the area. There are 7- acres remaining to mine on the existing property which they are putting on the back-burner until the Expansion area is completed. After the mining is complete the concrete plant will remain, but they will have to truck in material.
Once mining is complete, trucking in materials is not optimal due to the added expense. On March 30th, Mark said Bestway would most likely move the concrete plant to be co-located with a gravel pit at a different location. Mark speculated that Bestway would shutdown this concrete plant in ~5-10 years. This is not a firm date.
They have taken several steps at the request of the Town of Windsor: built the fence at the entrance, agreed to keep stacks of sand/gravel/rock at lower heights, and keep gravel trucks off Main Street (concrete truck wherever needed to deliver concrete). Many of gravel trucks travel back and forth between this location and the northeast corner of Greeley. Since 392 is a State Highway they can utilize it, but avoid it as much as possible per Windsor’s request. I support this, but it further justifies the need to expand CR-13 because CR-13 receives more truck traffic when its diverted from Main Street.
They employee a full-time water truck operator to keep dust down. I took this picture facing west:
The area between the concrete plant and the Poudre River will be restored into a large reservoir and a wildlife refuge. It will be turned over to the Town of Windsor and will be available for trails and other activities. Mark said Bestway will shape the reservoir however Windsor wants it, including walking paths, islands for wildlife, etc. On March 30th, Mark said that they are currently in the planning stages and hopes to have the wildlife refuge available to the public in ~3 years (hopefully in 2021). This is not a firm date.
The 20-acres that are being mined for 3 years will be returned to its original state. There will be no reservoir.
I will share some new information, but do not want to cause alarm. The 20-acre area that Bestway plans to mine is being leased from a Dr. Jonathan Lee, a Plastic Surgeon in Denver. I’m told he works in Denver, but returns to his permanent residence in San Diego for weekends. I’m told that he wants the 20-acres returned to its original state after its mined because he plans to build a Home Depot.
- I will verify and get more information.
- If this is true, Windsor should annex the property. If it’s part of Windsor, the owner would have to seek the town’s approval to build. If approved, it would have to be built meeting Windsor’s building codes and other criteria. If approved, Windsor should also get the sales tax. I’m told the owner does not want the property annexed.
- I have reached out to Scott Ballstadt, Chief Planner for the Town of Windsor and will provide updates.
There are 2 smaller reservoirs in the southwest corner of the area which are owned by Central Weld County Water District in Greeley who owns a lot of the water in the area. These reservoirs are independent of the Bestway operations.
Central Weld County Water District: https://www.cwcwd.com/
There are some oil and gas operations on the east end of the area that are not related to Bestway operations. It is close to new businesses planned along Main Street (Burger King, Associates in Family Medicine, etc.).
Contact me with any questions.
— written by Barry Wilson: (970) 518-2220
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