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Residents warn board that proposed concrete plant would put White Marsh Elementary at risk
Summary
At the Talbot County Board of Education meeting, three public commenters raised health, safety and traffic concerns about a proposed concrete batching and prestressed facility near White Marsh Elementary, citing particulate pollution and heavy-truck routes; the property owner defended the zoning and state regulation.
Sally Heckman, a retired pharmacist and president of a Trapp homeowners association, told the Talbot County Board of Education the proposed concrete operations are sited within a few hundred feet of White Marsh Elementary and called the project a health and safety risk. “The worst pollutant in the concrete plant is particulate matter…It permeates everywhere,” Heckman said, urging the board to note the proximity to the school and the potential for respiratory harm to young children.
Tom Mitchell, a local business owner, echoed concerns about truck traffic and local roads, saying the likely routes from Old Trap Road to Route 50 would force heavy vehicles past the school and through neighborhoods. He warned that upgrading the parcel from light-industrial to heavier industrial use would increase noise, dust and safety risks for parents and buses picking up students.
Property owner Brian Halls, who identified himself at the podium, countered that the site is zoned industrial and compared the proposal to other longstanding concrete operations in the region. “All of these things that Sally and Mitchell talked about are controlled — air quality, water quality — by the state of Maryland,” Halls said, asking why the board had the topic on its meeting agenda.
Board Chair (speaker 1) read the district’s public-comment rules before the three addresses and told the audience the board and superintendent reserve the right to correct misinformation raised in public comments. Superintendent Dr. P. later reiterated that some concerns raised by commenters about grant-funded items and other topics had been investigated and that the district would provide factual follow-ups when appropriate.
The board did not take action on the concrete proposal during the meeting. The remarks were recorded during the public-comment period so board members could be aware of neighborhood concerns; zoning, permitting and environmental regulation remain under the authority of county planning and state environmental agencies, as noted by a commenter.
