D.M. Conner quarry expansion approved by Augusta zoning board

VERONA – After months of hearings before the Augusta County Board of Zoning Appeals, D.M. Conner was approved to expand its quarry on Wednesday.

The zoning board tabled the operation expansion vote in May, waiting until after they approved D.M. Conner to reclaim land they quarried without a permit in June.

The board discussed the special use permit application for less than five minutes before Boardmember Thomas Bailey moved to approve. The board held a public hearing on the expansion in May and did not have a second hearing.

Boardmembers unanimously voted in favor of the application. Board Chair George Coyner said he received several calls in favor of the approval before the meeting that morning and none opposed. The entire discussion took under five minutes.

"This particular portion that we're getting ready to go into, it should not be a problem, I wouldn't think," Coyner said of the approved quarry area.

The vote means owners Debbie Henderson, Benny Conner, and Sharon Conner are breathing a sigh of relief.

"It's still the end of the month and the second quarter of the fiscal year," Henderson told The News Leader after the meeting. "I'm going to work all weekend!"

In May, Benny Conner told The News Leader he anticipated the quarry would “run out of rock” if the 35-acre expansion wasn’t approved. After the meeting, Sharon Conner said she hadn’t been able to eat ahead of the meeting.

When asked how critical the zoning approve was to their operation, Henderson said "extremely, we really need it."

"Especially the stone — I had people calling after six o'clock last night," Henderson said. "You make it, and it disappears as soon as it hits the ground. 'Hook me up!'"

The approval comes with additional preconditions. Before operations begin on the new lot, D.M. Conner will have to:

• Submit a site planning showing the entire 40.492-acre operation, including the 35.492 acres approved on Wednesday.
• Submit an updated mining plan showing the reclamation plan, including buffers.
• Mark, using stakes and ribbon, the 200-foot buffer physically on the property, including the 500-foot buffer from Cole’s Campers subdivision.

D.M. Conner has not begun reclamation on the improperly-mined buffer. The zoning board approved the site for work last month, but Benny Conner told both The News Leader and the board that hydroseeding is typically done around September or October to maximize the plants' chance to take root.

The entire application can be found beginning on page 63 of the board's May agenda packet.

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