Board approves Luck Companies permit after weeks of community objections from Henrico neighbors

The Goochland County Board of Supervisors on Sept. 3 granted Luck Companies a conditional‑use permit to expand accessory quarry operations on a 70.18‑acre tract east of Ashland Road, including a phased overburden‑placement plan and engineered berms the company says will screen operations from adjacent homes.

Linwood Thomas, director of Luck Companies's Mid‑Atlantic Greenfield team, told the board the company has operated in Goochland for decades, highlighted its environmental compliance record and said the requested changes are internal to its existing footprint. "We are not proposing mineral extraction on these parcels nor night blasting," Thomas said, and added the expansion would help the company internalize truck traffic and reduce long‑term road impacts on Ashland Road.

The application drew strong opposition from many residents of neighboring Henrico County, whose backyards abut the eastern boundary of the Luck site. Several Henrico officials and dozens of residents attended the meeting, asking the Goochland board to defer action to allow more negotiation and to press Luck for larger undisturbed buffers. "A 150‑foot berm is equivalent to a 15‑story building," said Michelle (Missy) Wysinski, who lives on Axe Handle Court. "This will change our view, our property values and our daily life."

Staff explained the CUP would carry forward many 2012 conditions for the site and added clarifications: a defined 50‑foot undisturbed buffer along the shared line with additional vegetated berming beyond that, signage to mark the protected area, a maximum overburden height cap of 150 feet, and a reaffirmation of quarry operating standards (prohibiting night blasting and restricting hours). The applicant also committed that emergency access only would be allowed from certain minor roads and that routine truck traffic would use internal site access and not local residential roads.

Supervisors weighed the company's long local presence, its environmental certifications and the project's stated goal of keeping heavy traffic internal against neighbors' concerns. Several Goochland residents and business groups, including the Chamber of Commerce, spoke in support, citing Luck's local investments and charitable work.

The board approved the CUP by voice and roll call after discussion. The motion incorporates the CUP conditions as presented; staff will finalize the recorded exhibits and continue coordination with the applicant and neighboring jurisdictions as appropriate.

What happens next: The CUP is subject to the recorded conditions and requires plan‑of‑development approvals and technical permits (stormwater, building, highway access) before implementation. Staff and the applicant said they will continue outreach to neighbors in Henrico and Goochland.

Quote mapping: All direct quotes in this article are attributable to speakers who spoke on the record during the Sept. 3 meeting.