A Rotterdam company is looking to dig into a sand and gravel mine in Glenville after it has remained dormant for decades.
The Glenville Planning and Zoning Commission on Monday, June 11, unanimously voted to give a positive recommendation to the Zoning Board of Appeals on William Larned & Sons, Inc.’s proposal to reactivate a former sand and gravel mine. The project would include reclamation of the property and a portion of the adjacent Scotia Sand & Stone-owned property.
The proposal would involve mining 3.2 acres located off Vley Road, immediately west of the National Grid overhead transmission lines. In order to proceed, the Zoning Board of Appeals must grant a use variance since the property is zoned Suburban Residential.
“There is little use other than mining at this spot,” commission member Mark Storti said.
The mine has not been operational since the 1970s, according to Paul Buzash, consultant for Larned. The company purchased the property in 1997, but nothing was done at the site, Buzash said.
He said the “demand is not there” to be aggressively mining the site and hauling out `huge loads` each day. He said Larned just wants a return on his investment.
The company would access the site from Vley Road to build an access road to the mine. Once the road is built, mining vehicles would leave on land acquired from Scotia Sand & Stone.
Resident Mary Rainey said her father, Pete Zobre, lives near the mining site and she expressed concerns about what would happen after the mining operation concludes.
“These pits get left with fences that then get broken down and then people that don’t want to pay to have their garbage removed come and use it as a trash dump,` Rainey said. `The aquifer is wide open down there.`
Zobre, however, said he is not worried about the project and understands there is little use for the site other than mining.
Resident Dale Olsen, along with other neighboring residents, expressed concern about the dust and noise possible once operations begin, but he also wondered if the protestations would have any effect on the decision to grant a variance.
“We seem like we are in our own little world,” Olsen said.
Since the state oversees mining operations, the town can’t block the project from progressing. The town can make recommendations on local impacts, such as controlling dust and accessing local roads for moving mined material.
Larned must follow the requirements of a permit granted by the Department of Environmental Conservation, which requires the controlling of dust and sets hours of operation.
Hours of operation would be limited to Monday to Friday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday. Along with Sunday, mining can’t be done on several holidays, which include New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Processing mined material on-site is not planned, said Buzash.
Buzash said he is listening to residents’ concerns, and the company plans to be a “good neighbor.”
The public will be able to comment on the project during the Glenville Zoning Board of Appeals meeting on Monday, June 25, at 7 p.m. at Town Hall.