A judge has denied a giant mining company’s request to overturn the Jackson County Board of Commissioners’ denial of a rezoning request that would have allowed a granite quarry in southern Jackson County near the community of Center.
The nearly 900-acre tract just off U.S. Highway 441, now mainly forested with some wetlands, borders the North Oconee River, Athens-Clarke County’s primary drinking water source, and is near Athens-Clarke County’s Sandy Creek Park.
The commission denied Vulcan Materials Company’s request in November in a series of eight 5-1 votes—a vote for each land parcel involved. The votes came after a two-hour public hearing packed with citizens opposing the quarry, who cited environmental, traffic and other concerns in an area that state geologists have identified as an important groundwater recharge area. Documents submitted in opposition included a petition with more than 1,500 signees and a letter from then-ACC Manager Blaine Williams.
Vulcan had petitioned the court in December asking a judge to either reverse the zoning denial or order the commission to reverse its denial. The commission’s decision was based on insufficient evidence and denied the company its due process rights, according to Vulcan’s petition. In addition, the county’s ordinances were invalid, in conflict with the state constitution, it said.
Jackson County Superior Court Judge Benjamin Green denied Vulcan’s appeal in a late May order. In rejecting those arguments, he said the commission had not abused its discretion in its rezone denial.
The five commissioners who voted to deny the Vulcan rezone each voted without comment, but according to Green’s ruling, their decision “was sustained by sufficient evidence in the record, was not an abuse of the BOC’s discretion, and was consistent with applicable law.”
Jackson County’s planning staff and quarry opponents had cited its potential effects on water resources, the area’s rural character, traffic and impact on neighbors, among other concerns, Green noted.
The commission’s decision “clearly exceeds” an evidence standard in Georgia law, Green wrote.
Quarry opponents expect Vulcan to appeal to a higher court. Vulcan lawyer David Ellison of Athens did not return phone or email messages asking for the company’s intent, however.
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