Aggregates Manager Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/440030
State & Province NEWS To keep up to date with this breakdown of news in the United States and Canada, visit www.AggMan.com for daily updates. by Therese Dunphy, Editor-in-Chief tdunphy@randallreilly.com AGGREGATES MANAGER January 2015 6 Iowa The Higman family announced that it sold its Akron aggregates business to Sioux Falls-based L.G. Everist Inc. Steve Mousel, the new owner's chief fi nancial offi cer, told The Akron Hometowner that "we have an opportunity here for one family-owned business to join forces with another strong family-owned business." L.G. Everist owns and operates an aggregates operation next to the Higman sand and gravel site. Higman employees will join the new owners, and the operation will be merged into its business. Massachusetts The Plymouth Zoning Board of Appeals voted 3-2 against granting Kingstown Trucking a special-use permit to remove 250,000 cubic yards of sand and gravel from 10 acres of a 106-acre parcel of county land. According to wickedlocal.com, county representatives wanted to remove the gravel to install a solar fi eld on the site. Members said they voted against the proposal because the end use wasn't defi nitive enough. Solar companies interested in providing arrays for the project wouldn't commit to a project that wouldn't begin for two years - the time frame to remove the gravel fi ll. Nebraska The Cass County Board of Commissioners approved an amendment to Martin Marietta's conditional-use permit to add four new parcels on the west side of existing operations, bringing its total number of parcels in the permit to 49. WOWT NBC reports that the expansion will all be underground mining. Maryland The Caroline County Board of Supervisors ap- proved a special-exception permit for a sand and gravel operation near the historic Moss Neck Manor. The Freelance-Star reports that an exception is required because there is no min- ing allowed by right in the county and the land is zoned rural preservation. Chaney Enterprises asked to mine 544 of the 1,209 acres in 30-acre increments. In its fi rst fi ve years of operation, the plant is expected to generate 25 jobs. Michigan At press time, Oakland County offi cials were wait- ing for a vote from members of the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund to approve a $2.9 million grant for the Michigan Department of Natu- ral Resources. Detroit News Press reports that, if approved, the DNR would use the grant to purchase 312 acres from a gravel pit owner to create an ad- venture park. Groveland Township would kick in an additional 90 acres. The park would be used for off-road vehicles and dirt-bike motorcycles at fi rst. Eventually, cable-powered water skiing and zip-line wake boarding would be added. Missouri By a 7-2 vote, Eureka Planning and Zoning Committee rejected a proposed zoning change that would allow Winter Brothers Material Co. to mine sand and gravel within the city limits. Ac- cording to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, representatives for the company said it would appeal the decision. It sought rezoning of 247 acres from residential to fl ood plain designation. The committee unanimously rejected a special-use permit for the operator to extract raw materials and process them. The site is projected to generate nearly $500 million in sales over 40 years. "There's value to the city of Eureka," Winters Brothers President Tom Winter told the newspaper. "I feel we can de- velop this site in a safe, environmentally sound manner." Pennsylvania The Environmental Hearing Board in Harrisburg ruled that the Department of Environmental Protection "abused its discretion" when repeatedly extending a permit for the Gibraltar Rock quarry, and the company must re-apply for the permit. According to The Mercury News, a representative for the operator noted that land development requirements would have required it to go through the permitting process anyway, but pointed out that the permit was not terminated despite the township's request. In its fi lings, Hanover Township sought to have the board force the DEP to revoke the permit. "The permit renewal objection allowed by this adjudication maintains the status quo to some extent, but it also requires the (DEP) to ensure that the permit issued in 2005 is still current and up to date," the Environmental Hearing Board wrote in its decision.