More public meetings to be held
The Iola Village Board Zoning Committee held a public meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 19, and one agenda item dealt with “Ryan Brown from Waupaca County Zoning to discuss Non-Metallic Mining.”
The application for mining has been submitted by the Iola Car Show and Faulks Brothers Construction.
At the meeting were concerned community members.
There will be additional town meetings to discuss the approval of the conditional use permit.
The scope of the mining pit is divided into two sections: North (Village of Iola) five acres and South (Town of Scandinavia) for a total of 19.6 acres.
Letter informing residents
A letter, co-signed by Joe Opperman, executive director of the Iola Car Show, and Jon Faulks, president of Faulks Brothers Construction, was mailed out to landowners near the proposed pit area.
“We are excited to announce the Iola Car Show and Faulks Bros. Construction have partnered on an extensive parking lot project located within the Iola Car Show Grounds,” the letter began. “The project will involve the removal of Sand and Gravel to accomplish a level parking surface for the car show visitors on Lots two, three, four, five, six, and seven.
“To economically accomplish this goal, Faulks Bros. Construction will be opening a sand and gravel pit to extract and process materials within the above-mentioned areas. The planned excavation will be on avg. of twenty-six feet and dependent on market conditions, is proposed to take ten to fifteen years to accomplish our goal. The materials from the project will be primarily utilized in the Construction and Landscape Industries.
“To minimize disturbance to the neighbors and surrounding community, we will primarily be utilizing a single stage dry screening process to stockpile materials on site. The equipment utilized in the process of materials will include but not limited to mobile screen, small generator, conveyers, front-end loaders, and a skid-steer. Dump trucks will be used to deliver processed materials to Faulks Bros. customers in the surrounding areas. The initial removal of overburden and completion of the project will require the use of excavators, off-road dump trucks, bull dozers and alike equipment.
“Since this project involves the processing of sand and stone, it will be subject to random inspection form the Mine Health Safety Administration (MHSA) for health and safety of employees and surrounding neighbors on a Bi-annual basis. In addition to the required inspections and audits performed by the WI DNR, WI DOT, and Waupaca County.
“Hours of operation may vary slightly, although hours of operation will be permitted for 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday Through Friday. If Saturday operations are necessary, the operations will be from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. There will be no operations conducted on Sunday or Holidays.
“In addition to this letter, there will be subsequent notification coming from Waupaca County concerning this project,” the letter indicated.
Opposition voices
The following individuals have raised concerns about the proposed pit mining project.
“I am concerned about the long-term health effects this 10–15-year project will pose: the added dust in the air, increase in heavy duty truck traffic, effects of our groundwater, and effects of storm runoff.” – Betsy Grant
“The location of the proposed open pit mining operation makes very little sense to do this within the Village of Iola limits and surrounding residential area.” – Gregg Johnson
“This is our golden years, and I am concerned about destruction of the beautiful neighborhood landscape, excessive noise, and disruption of wildlife habitat.” – Barbara Johnson
“I bought this land for hunting. Why do you have to disrupt the land?” – Brian Kasten
“Ten to fifteen years is the rest of my husband’s life. How is it that what you have to gain is more important than what I have to lose? Silence and serenity is priceless.” – Laura Scott
“Homesteading in Iola since 1977 has meant growing my food, opening my windows to fresh air (no central air), dark evenings, quiet surroundings, and walking to my best friend’s house – all of which I will lose with the grime, noise, fences, and lights of a gravel pit imposed on me 500 feet from my home.” – Amy J. Ording (Phelps)
The next steps
At the Oct. 19 of the Village of Iola Zoning Committee, Ryan Brown, from Waupaca County Zoning, made a presentation for informational purposes only. He explained the process and recommended that Faulks Bros. Construction be brought into discussion.
In addition, the Town of Scandinavia and the Village of Iola have different zoning ordinances, which will have to be rectified by both governing boards before any permitting action can occur.
There will be additional public meetings about the proposed pit mining operation.