Summarized by Kent Larsen
Neighbors Want LDS Church to Guarantee Granite Quarry Work Will Be Over This Year
Salt Lake Tribune 29Jul99 C6
By Brandon Loomis: Salt Lake Tribune
Neighbors who sought to block the LDS Church's quarrying of granite from
their neighborhood are now trying to hurry up the effort. In the wake of
the Salt Lake County Commission's decision last month to allow the
Church to quarry within 800 feet of homes in the area, the neighbors are now
seeking to force the Church to finish the job in the next four to six
weeks.
"They claimed that they would be done in four to six weeks, and the only
reason they wanted to break [the buffer limit] was to get in and get
out," says neighbor Karen Cunningham. "If that's the case, let them get in and
get out." But Cunningham isn't convinced that speed is really the
Church's
motive for quarrying inside the buffer (i.e., within 1,000 feet of homes
in
the neighborhood), "They did it for ease and to get more rock out," she
said.
The LDS Church's attorney on the project, Mark Mascaro, told County
commissioners earlier this month that, provided there was good weather,
the
Church could finish this summer, if they could quarry closer to the
homes.
Mascaro declined comment to the Salt Lake Tribune Wednesday.
One County Commissioner, Brent Overson is disposed to hear the
neighbor's
appeal, "That's fair enough," he said. "It's important to hear all the
facts."
But Overson declined to say if he would vote for a time restriction on
the
Church's quarrying. Other commissioners either were unavailable or
wanted more
information before making a decision.
The attorney for the neighbors, Cullen Battle, said that the request to
force
the Church to finish early was reasonable. "If there's going to be an
extra
burden on the people who live there, there ought to be some benefit to
them,"
he said.
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