Mining rezone decision expected Monday

After months of back and forth debate over a proposed quarry in Hamptonville, a final decision is expected to come from the Yadkin County Commissioners on Monday, Aug. 15. Monday’s meeting will include a public hearing on the rezoning request submitted by Three Oaks Quarry. Representatives from Three Oaks Quarry, as well as community residents opposed to the project are likely to speak during the hearing.

Hamptonville area residents became aware of test drilling on the nearly 500-acre property in question late last year. Few details were released at first, giving rise to suspicion from residents. In March of this year Real Estate Developer Jack Mitchell sent a letter to neighboring property owners identifying himself as President of Three Oaks Quarry and said he was working with Turnkey Processing Solutions, a company that develops properties to produce aggregate, a key ingredient in construction of roads. Though neighbors had initially been fearful of fracking or lithium mining, they were, nonetheless, upset about the possibility of a quarry.

Noise and vibrations from blasting, increased traffic, and property values, are just a few of the concerns from residents. The proximity to West Yadkin Elementary School has been one of the main issues brought up by opponents of the project.

Just after Mitchell’s March letter, several hundred Hamptonville residents gathered on March 17 at the elementary school for a community meeting about the quarry. Yadkin County School Board members were among those who spoke against the project during that meeting as well as Yadkin County School’s Superintendent Todd Martin.

“It’s my job to advocate for the children of this school and the other schools here in this county, and it’s greatly concerning to me, personally, to know that a mine is going to be just behind this school and in such close proximity to 460 students and approximately 60 staff members who work here everyday,” Martin said at the meeting. “I’m worried about the blasting, it’s been described that the blasting is going to be minimal, but that’s still a concern for me.”

Also speaking at the March meeting was Edgar Miller representing the Yadkin Riverkeeper organization. Miller said runoff and sediment into Deep Creek could be a concern.

Water quality issues have been another major concern from area residents, many of whom have wells.

Three Oaks Quarry held a day-long information session on March 23 where Mitchell was present as well as other representatives for the project. The info session was meant to ease concerns from residents about the impacts of a mine and include stations representing various parts of the project, including a video demonstration of the sound of the blasting.

“We want to be a good neighbor,” Mitchell said during the info session. He acknowledged that there would be an impact to the community in terms of noise during the construction and from the blasting but said the goal would be to minimize the impact to the community.

“How do we minimize that so that way people in two or three or four years say, ‘I don’t even know those guys are there.’ That’s the goal,” he said.

Three Oaks Quarry representatives and Hamptonville residents have been in attendance at multiple meetings of the Yadkin County Planning board. Three Oaks Quarry has submitted numerous documents and reports indicating the mitigation efforts that would be in place to protect the area. Three Oaks representatives have also spoken at length on information on the noise level, traffic and other concerns and have made adjustments to the size of the quarry. They have also adjusted the proposed blasting schedule to take place only in after school times to avoid possible disruptions at the nearby elementary school. Three Oaks also has a website with details on the project.

Quarry opponents have retained their own lawyer to attempt to refute certain information from Three Oaks Quarry. Opponents of the project have also been in attendance at nearly every Yadkin County Commissioners’ meeting since November, each meeting requesting that the board vote no on the proposed mine and sharing information on why their vote should be no.

At its June meeting, the Yadkin County Planning Board, in a 3-2 vote, approved the requested rezoning of the property, located near 3641 Hwy US 21 in Hamptonville, from Rural Agriculture to Manufacturing Industrial (MI-1). The matter will now go before the Yadkin County Board on Aug. 15.

Unlike the planning board which had 60 days to make a recommendation on the project, the county board is under no such time restraint. As with any similiar rezoning request there are several options on how the board could potentially act on the matter explained County Manger Lisa Hughes.

“The Board could make a motion for the rezoning or a motion to deny the rezoning. A motion can also fail for the lack of a second. There could be a motion to table the item or a motion to reschedule or continue the item. There would be a vote on any motion,” she said.

Hughes also noted that Commissioner Gilbert Hemric has already been recused from all discussions and actions on the requested rezoning, as he has a direct conflict of interest.

Though disappointed with the planning board decision in June, community opponents of the mine have continued to raise funds for a lawyer and pursue their fight. A second community meeting was held Aug. 2 at West Yadkin Fire Department where organizer Danny Steelman encouraged as many people as possible to attend the Aug. 15 hearing to show their opposition to the project. He asked that everyone in the room, some 65 people, attend and bring five people with them. Attendees were also encouraged to bring along their children, particularly those who are students at West Yadkin, and bring lawn chairs in case there was not enough room inside the building.

Hughes said there are not plans to move to a larger space, the hearing is to take place in the Commissioners’ Room of the Human Services Building, 217 E. Willow St., Yadkinville, which has an occupancy maximum of 100 people, including staff and the Commissioners.

“Overflow can stand in the lobby, but they cannot block any doors or entrances,” said Hughes.

Hughes said the meeting will be livestreamed via Zoom and the link will be posted to the Yadkin County website yadkincountync.gov the day of the meeting.

Though the board has often voted to suspend its usual public comment rules at recent meetings to allow for additional speakers, Hughes said they will be following the adopted procedures for public hearings for the Aug. 15 meeting that limits the number of speakers and the amount of time for each speaker.