Planning commission recommends approval for 1880 Block Quarry expansion; commissioners weigh 20‑year CUP and road‑tracking conditions

Miami County planning staff told the Board of County Commissioners on July 30 that the Planning Commission recommended approval of a conditional‑use permit (CUP) to expand an existing quarry operation operated by 18 80 Enterprises. The CUP would extend quarrying beyond the original west‑80 acres to include adjoining property to the east, bringing the total affected acreage to just over 200 acres, per staff. Kenny Cook, planning director, summarized the case history: the quarry operation dates to about 1954 and was approved under the county’s 1992 zoning adoption as Z‑87; the current expansion application follows a 2023 property transfer. Cook said the Planning Commission held a public hearing, requested a traffic study, and recommended approval 6–1. Cook said an engineer found the quarry’s projected truck traffic did not meet thresholds requiring turn lanes under KDOT standards. Traffic and road impacts The applicants’ traffic analysis estimated quarry‑generated trips at about 107 trips per day (counting arrivals and departures). Staff said existing local counts were roughly 1,470 vehicles per day on Hedge Lane north of the quarry, with a level‑of‑service rating of A; the engineer concluded the added quarry traffic would not trigger turn‑lane requirements. Community concerns and conditions Neighbors and commissioners raised concerns about rock, mud and debris tracked onto Hedge Lane. Staff proposed—and the Planning Commission revised—condition No. 18, which previously required paving the quarry entrance and implementing measures such as sweeping or water trucks. Commissioners and residents asked for stronger mitigation; planning staff agreed to add language requiring appropriate dust and track‑out controls and suggested a practical, enforceable option such as the application of calcium chloride "at least twice per year" or paving up to the scale house. One resident and a commissioner urged treating the road surface beyond the cattle guard to reduce tracked material. CUP term, reclamation and protest petition Staff and the applicant discussed CUP duration. County staff noted a maximum 20‑year CUP cap under county practice; the applicant sought a longer period for investment certainty and preferred 20 years to balance investment risk and public oversight. On reclamation, the applicant proposed filling final pits with a pond—staff said the state oversees reclamation details and that any reclamation proposal that would materially change land use could require additional county approval. Cook said valid protest petitions were filed covering six of 13 properties within the 1,000‑foot notification area, representing about 55% of the notified acreage. He advised the board that statute KSA 12‑7‑57(g) exempts quarry operations from the state’s super‑majority protest threshold, so a simple majority vote remains sufficient for approval. Next steps Cook said the Planning Commission recommended approval; he will prepare revised resolution language incorporating the stronger track‑out/dust controls for the board to consider at the afternoon action session. Because the proposed change to condition No. 18 would alter the Planning Commission’s recommendation, Cook noted a two‑thirds board vote would be required to modify the recommendation if the board adopts that revision. Ending The quarry CUP and a related motion to revise condition No. 18 were scheduled for the board’s afternoon agenda; the Planning Commission record and the traffic study were placed in the public file.