Residents urge school board to oppose proposed quarry and asphalt plant near Lafayette Meadows

Three residents told the MSD Southwest Allen County Schools board that they want the district to oppose a proposed limestone quarry and asphalt cement plant less than two miles from the administration building and immediately adjacent to neighborhood schools.

At a public-comment period that opened the meeting, Emily Bowler, who said she lives on Boy Road, said the Heritage Group submitted a rezoning application that neighbors learned about only within the last two weeks. "They're proposing to build the asphalt cement plant on the east side of Homestead Road ... and the limestone quarry on the west side," Bowler told the board, and she urged attendance at upcoming public meetings.

Why it matters: speakers said children who attend Lafayette Meadows and nearby schools will be exposed to silica dust and plant emissions that can worsen asthma and other respiratory conditions and that quarry blasting and truck traffic would disrupt classrooms and learning. Andrea Milleman, who identified herself as a nearby resident, told the board the county review bodies…