Mining operations gets OK to expand

Neighbors voice concerns to zoning board.

A proposal to expand an existing gravel pit on South Davis Road was approved by the Miami County Board of Zoning Appeals with stipulations added in response to nearby property owners’ concerns.

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The board’s unanimous vote in January approved a conditional use permit for expanding the Barrett Paving Materials mineral extraction site on South Davis Road.

The business sought the permit to expand the existing 73,948-acre site by 10 acres to the east into what is now a wooded area.

The appeals board approved the original conditional use permit for the operation in 1992.

The board heard comments from about a half dozen neighboring or nearby property owners about disruptions from quarry blasting and truck traffic and potential impact on area wells. A representative of Barrett Paving discussed the concerns raised with the residents.

As part of the conditional use approval, the board included stipulations that the company work with the state to obtain “no engine brake” signs for roads where truck noise was noted as a concern.

The company also will be required to set up a method for notifying area property owners interested of upcoming blasting work.

Steven Swick, attorney for Barrett Paving said the company had been a “good neighbor” for 25 years and proposed to add to the work area already being mined. The company “is already doing this and won’t change the nature of the landscape of the area,” he said.

Monte Yates, a mining engineer for Barrett, said the ingress and egress at the site would remain the same.

Charles Ellis said he’d lived in his house off Ohio 571 for 30 years and had noticed an increase in blasting at the operation the past few years. The blasts rattled his windows, he said, while other residents said it upset their horses.

Yates answered a number of questions posed by the residents and said the company was willing to work on issues including advance notice of blasting at the site.

The appeals board was scheduled in the fall to hold a hearing on a proposal for a conditional use permit for a new surface mining operation between Piqua and Troy. Piqua Materials withdrew the application the day before the Oct. 27 public hearing on the proposal for property at Farrington and Experiment Farm roads.

The application could be refiled following a one-year waiting period, according to Dan Suerdieck, county planning and zoning manager.

Contact this contributing writer at nancykburr@aol.com.

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