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Justice Johnson urges core drilling, cost study before expanding Marion County quarry
Summary
Justice Johnson told the Marion County court the county must commission quadrant/core drilling and a cost analysis before expanding quarry operations on newly purchased land, warning of uncertain subsurface conditions, potential multi‑million‑dollar crusher replacement costs and the need for a new maintenance shop estimate.
At the Marion County court meeting on July 14, 2026, Justice Johnson presented technical recommendations for the county quarry and the recently purchased 10.9 acres, urging a geological study and cost analysis before beginning new operations. "Now the property has been bought," Johnson told the court, underscoring the need for more information before proceeding.
Johnson said the court should perform quadrant/core drilling to verify subsurface rock and avoid costly surprises. "You gotta do quad, core drill, which means you gotta go down and you're gonna have to drill down and make sure that the rock and that new quarry is same as what's in the old 1," he said. He warned that skipping that step risks discovering unusable material after more expensive vertical extraction begins.
He asked the court to compile estimates including the quarry's historical opening date, the current area of extraction, total tonnage removed to date, average annual tonnage removed and an estimate of remaining yardage on a horizontal plane. That baseline, he said, would allow planners to estimate how many years horizontal extraction would remain and whether vertical mining would be required.
Johnson also raised equipment and facility concerns. He described the county's existing rock crusher as "pushing the envelope" and said replacement costs could be substantial: "you can get in a half 1,000,000 to 2,000,000 easy." He recommended the county evaluate crusher production, expected remaining life and the cost of replacing or outsourcing crushing versus continuing county operations.
On the shop proposal, Johnson said a new maintenance facility near the quarry could improve efficiency but must be weighed against site preparation and construction costs. "It could get into, like, a quarter million dollars," he said. He urged the court to estimate land prep, drainage, clearing, facility costs and anticipated travel‑time savings before committing to construction.
Johnson said he had presented his findings to the judge and would bring the materials to the court for further planning: "I presented it. I'll bring it here to court and also to you so that we can make sure to stay ahead again." The presentation closed with an invitation for the court to obtain the drilling, tonnage and cost estimates needed to decide how to proceed.
The court did not take a final vote on quarry operations at the meeting; Johnson's presentation was delivered as unfinished business and referred for follow up.
