A road crew wants to camp in a gravel pit while it fixes the Elliott Highway

The contractor hired for emergency repairs on 12 miles of the Elliott Highway wants to house its crew on state land at the gravel pit near Milepost 133 while the work goes on. The state is taking comment on that through Sept. 28.

Qayaq Construction has asked the Department of Natural Resources for a one-year permit on about five acres inside the pit, a state-owned source of gravel and rock. The camp would hold RV parking for up to 20 workers, water storage, wastewater tanks, generators, equipment parking and a fueling area.

The repairs cover the Elliott between Mileposts 137 and 149 and the Tofty/Tanana Road. That stretch is the way west of Fairbanks toward Manley Hot Springs, Tofty and Tanana. Spring load limits on the Elliott and Tofty came off Aug. 5 when the transportation department put its northern roads back on summer permitting.

Written comments go to the Division of Mining, Land and Water in Fairbanks by 5 pm Sept. 28, and the application packet is available on request from Jim Wessel at 907-451-2777. The state has not said when it will decide.