Planning commissioners Josh Harger and Grant Martin listen to Planning Consultant David Knopick discuss a potential quarry. Members of the public can attend a Nov. 16 Lawrence-Douglas County meeting to comment on the quarry. " />
Planning commissioners Josh Harger and Grant Martin listen to Planning Consultant David Knopick discuss a potential quarry. Members of the public can attend a Nov. 16 Lawrence-Douglas County meeting to comment on the quarry.
About a dozen members of the public, with additional people tuning in on Zoom, attended Wednesday’s Planning Commission meeting to hear discussion of a potential quarry that would lie just outside city limits.
Mid-States Materials, LLC, based in Topeka, is requesting a conditional use permit for a quarry on East 2300 Road.
No public comments on the project were allowed at Wednesday’s meeting. Commissioners encouraged interested residents to go to a joint Lawrence-Douglas County and Eudora Planning Commission meeting at 7 p.m. Nov. 16 at Lawrence City Hall.
The conditional use permit application will be discussed there, and people will be able to share their opinions.
Eudora will send a letter to the Lawrence-Douglas County Commission with city staff’s concerns about the potential quarry, Planning Consultant David Knopick said.
Feedback from community members can also be forwarded to Mary Miller, Lawrence-Douglas County Planner. Letters can be sent to 1 Riverfront Plaza, Suite 320, Lawrence, KS 66044, and Miller’s email is [email protected].
“Eudora is invited to this session because [the quarry] is within three miles of city limits,” Knopick said.
Commissioner Ryan Rock encouraged people to attend the Nov. 16 meeting.
“The more that people speak their opinion and convey their emotion, that’s powerful,” Rock said.
A report from Mid-States Materials says 40 acres of the quarry would be developed at a time, and land would be reclaimed as it proceeds.
“Using the property as a quarry will not detrimentally affect nearby properties,” the report said. “All dwellings are remote from the quarry. Additionally, there is substantial evidence that quarries do not affect the value of residential property.”
In other news, City Manager Barack Matite provided several updates regarding the Nottingham development, the Village Green and the STAR Bond project. Construction has started on the Village Green.
There is increased interest in the Nottingham Center from businesses following the Panasonic factory development, but Matite said it is too early to make announcements.
The city plans to reapply for a federally funded RAISE grant, from the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity program, for the shared-use path on Church Street following the creation of environmental assessments, Matite said.
“We expect that with the announcement of Panasonic, they will view our application more competitively,” Matite said.
The City Commission will have a joint meeting with the Planning Commission at 7 p.m. Nov. 14 at City Hall to discuss future Eudora development.
Following the groundbreaking ceremony of the Panasonic factory site Wednesday morning, Matite commented on the project’s development.
“That’s exciting news for the region and also ourselves, because our staff has been getting a lot of questions from developers,” Matite said. “Eudora will be a strategic place to be able to provide residential and retail opportunities those developers would need.”
Reach reporter Abby Shepherd at [email protected].