Some homeowners were not pleased recently as Coweta County commissioners voted unanimously to grant a rezoning request that will expand the quarry operations of Vulcan Materials Company. The 67.56-acre site is located north of Elzie Johnson Road between I-85 and U.S. Highway 29.

The Special Use Permit request for mining accompanied the request that a 42.75-acre portion of the property be rezoned from Rural Conservation and Commercial to Industrial.

The issue had been brought before the commission on three previous occasions over the past several years. But this time Vulcan representatives brought with them a settlement agreement to expand operations approved by nearby Arbor Springs Plantation Homeowners Association.

But agreement or not, Springwater Plantation Homeowners Association representative Matt Thompson said his subdivision would also be affected by the expansion and was adamant that commissioners should refuse the request.

Thompson cited concerns over various quality of life issues relating to blasting such as cracks in walls and the amount of noise that would be experienced throughout the neighborhood.

Thompson was joined by others from Springwater Crossing subdivision who expressed similar concerns.

“We feel the dynamiting,” said Letsie Craigman. “Now they want to come closer to us.”

Vulcan attorneys acknowledged that nearby Arbor Springs had agreed to a $125,000 settlement after negotiations that spanned several years. That move, however, did not sit well with other neighborhoods who believe they are at risk.

For their part, Vulcan agreed to comply with a number of conditions on which the rezoning and Special Use Permit were based.

In the end, commissioners voted unanimously to grant the request.

Coweta neighborhoods are not the only Vulcan neighbors concerned over the effects of blasting. Just miles up the road in south Fulton County, Vulcan’s Red Oak Quarry has been cited for years by nearby residents as having been responsible for extreme noise from blasting along with cracks to the foundations of their homes and other significant structural damage caused by repeated blasting.

By BEN NELMS
bnelms@TheCitizen.com