2,200 home development near Grand Canyon rejected
Mar 8, 2016, 6:00 AM
A development years in the making near the Grand Canyon in Tusayan, Ariz. has been rejected by federal officials according to the Los Angeles Times.
The development of 2,200 homes was rejected by the officials due to the negative effect it would have on the community’s fragile water supply, other environmental factors and thousands of public comments vehemently opposing the project.
“I have determined that the Tusayan proposal is deeply controversial, is opposed by local and national communities, would stress local and park infrastructure, and have untold impacts to the surrounding tribal and National Park lands,” Heather Provencio, the supervisor of Kaibab National Forest, wrote in a letter to Craig Sanderson, the mayor of Tusayan, Ariz.
The town of Tusayan has under 600 residents and in order for the plan to properly function, they would need permission for roads to be altered and added to the town.
This resulted in a public outcry during that time, including the U.S. Forest Service “receiving 2,447 unique comment letters, 85,693 form letters, two petitions with 105,698 signatures, and 86 other comments.”
The National Park Service was also against the project.
