DEADWOOD - The Lawrence County Planning and Zoning Commission believes a plan to expand a concentrated cattle feeding operation does not fit its rural neighborhood north of Spearfish.

The commission voted 6-1 Tuesday to recommend denial of a conditional use permit for Two Tone Cattle Company's plan to increase its confined beef cattle feedlot beyond 1,000 head.

More than 50 people packed Deadwood City Hall for the commission's three-hour public hearing. Those attending included all five Lawrence County commissioners, who will consider the planning board's recommendation oDec. 30.

Two Tone Cattle Company owners Bart and Harvey Krautschun of Spearfish have lived and worked on their 40-acre parcel about 1-1/2 miles northwest of Spearfish for more than 20 years. They started a feedlot in 1988 and applied for state Department of Environment and Natural Resources approval to expand the operation.

The Krautschuns want to feed 3,000 to 4,000 cattle six months a year, roughly from late October to May.

The Krautschuns' attorney, Ken Barker of Belle Fourche, said the county's decision could have far-reaching consequences.

"That land has always been for agricultural use," Barker said. "It is about whether a farm-ranch family can make a living on their own land."

They proposed to create a catch-basin and holding pond to capture cattle excrement runoff. They also planned to haul away or store about four truckloads of manure per day.

Most neighbors voiced opposition to the expansion, saying it would be an odor and pest nuisance. They also said ground and surface water quality and supply could be threatened, their property values might be decreased and said that increased seasonal truck traffic could be hazardous.

The cities of Spearfish and Belle Fourche officially opposed the expansion. Belle Fourche is concerned about pollution of its primary drinking water supply basin in that area. Spearfish is concerned that its municipal development plans in that area would be blocked by the feedlot.

"There is a clear objective here," Barker said. "The underlying current here is this valley needs to be preserved for development."

Belle Fourche City Engineer Terry Wolterstorff said: "The city's water supply originates near that area. This feedlot is perched over a very delicate convergence of water sources."

He recommended up to a year of in-depth study of the water and drainage between Spearfish and the Redwater River.

Marty O'Dea of Whitewood was the lone planning commissioner to vote for the expansion, saying 30 proposed operating conditions were enough to protect neighbors and the environment.

Planning and Zoning Commission Chairman Rick Tysdal disagreed. He and other commissioners were wary of granting a permit, only to have a room full of angry neighbors a year later.

"This is a lack of respect for the neighbors," he said. "That bothers me more than anything else."

Commissioners outlined several other reasons for recommending denial, saying it strays from the county's 10-year-old comprehensive plan, doesn't match existing land uses, and the acreage is too small for that size of an operation.