Why quarrel over a quarry?
You might start out asking yourself, "why some are people in Talkeetna getting all worked up over a quarry?" Let's start with a few big reasons.
There's a Vision for Talkeetna
Sometimes you might need to blink to see it a bit, but the Community of Talkeetna has spent hundreds of hours intentionally creating land use plans that reflect our old and current values, such as:
- 1985: creation of what's called the Susitna Area Plan (SAP)
- 1988-1998: the Talkeetna Comprehensive Plan
- September 1999: the Christiansen Lake Lake Management Plan
- 2003: the Talkeetna Special Use District (SPUD, if you were wondering)
- 2004: the Talkeetna Lakes Park Recreation Plan
- 2005 (Update): Matanuska-Susitna Borough Comprehensive Development Plan
- 2010: subcategory of Talkeetna Lakes Park Recreation Trails Master Plan
- 2011: Susitna-Matanuska Area Plan (SMAP)
- 2016: Trail Plans update
All of these plans are designed to help prevent a future where things just go completely bonkers. All of these plans recognized the Comsat Lakes area as high recreational value, and put emphasis on the protection of the pristine waters, land, wildlife, etc...
From the Talkeetna Comp Plan adopted January 1998 and amended March 1999 (vi):
Yet, most choose to live here because of this simpler lifestyle and the high quality of living it affords. People are here because they value clean air and water, space to live, a safe place to raise children, a sense of community, and wilderness out the back door.
It is our hope that this document can help our community remain the kind of place that provides this increasingly rare, yet invaluable, life experience for residents and visitors alike.