Residents, experts press county over Hampton borrow pit, blasting and ethics concerns

Hundreds of Carter County residents and multiple experts addressed the commission about an active borrow pit operation on a ridge in Hampton, raising health, safety, road‑damage and ethics concerns and urging the county to investigate possible conflicts of interest.

Speakers described repeated blasting, heavy truck traffic and property‑value losses, and several asked the commission to remove a local planning‑commission member from that body. A consultant who said he was retained to monitor vibration presented the only public instrument reading reported to date: a peak particle velocity of 0.104 inches per second from a July 28 test, which he said was below Tennessee regulatory limits for ground vibration.

The scale of comment reflected sustained local opposition. Theresa Notiford, who said she and her sister own property in Hampton, told commissioners the quarry activity is “a health hazard” for children and older adults and will hurt tourism in the area. Celeste Lance, who identified herself as an Elizabethton resident, said she and neighbors have experienced what she described as intimidation and harassment tied to the dispute over the operation.

Ben Brown, who said he grew up, works and lives in Hampton, framed the issue as both safety and ethics. Brown read excerpts…