Lehigh Hanson plans to open a granite mine on 352 acres near Pleasant Garden, North Carolina.
Owners of the farms and roadside houses in this rural part of Guilford County know they may never actually see the quarry — it'll be dug several hundred feet from a 20-foot berm with a row of trees planted along the top, but opposition to the quarry is strong, reports the Charlotte Observer.
Toby Lee, a company general manager, said the operation's first phase will be on 20 acres near the center of the property, which is bordered by McClellan Road on the east and is about 1,000 feet north of well-traveled NC 62.
The land is zoned for heavy industrial use but was originally approved for clay mining when Boren Brick owned it decades ago.
Lehigh Hanson is seeking approval in September from the Guilford County Planning Board for an updated set of conditions and a special-use permit to allow for mining.
With the clock ticking, residents are doing what they can to stop the quarry from becoming a reality.
Residents are certain the quarry's operations will be disruptive. Company officials, as you might expect, think those concerns are overblown.
Thomas E Terrell Jr, the company's Greensboro attorney, said Lehigh Hanson will present that information at the planning board's public meeting on Sept. 13.
Terrell is direct in his responses to quarry opponents. He said the company has offered to take community members on a tour of a Lehigh quarry operation in Wake County, but so far only two residents have signed up.
"The line of communication has been difficult at best," Terrell said. "We reached out to the community. None of the leaders have called (Lehigh) Hanson or me." Terrell said residents are spreading false information that the quarr.
