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Xenia Twp. commission recommends CEMEX application

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By Mark Gokavi, Staff Writer 1:15 AM Wednesday, September 21, 2011

WILBERFORCE — The Xenia Twp. Zoning Commission board voted unanimously to approve CEMEX’s application to rezone 290 acres from farm use to mineral extraction.

The matter will be forwarded to the Xenia Twp. Board of Trustees for final approval. The issue will not be heard at Thursday’s regular trustee meeting, but a CEMEX spokesperson said it should be on the agenda in the next 40 days.

If the board approves the application, blasting and mining operations for limestone in the area east of State Route 235, South of Hyde Road and West of West Enon Road could start in 2019.

“The Zoning Commission recognized that CEMEX has taken great care to ensure the safety, health and well-being of our neighbors in the Xenia Twp. community,” said Sara Engdahl, CEMEX’s Director of Coimmunications. “The commission also recognized CEMEX’s ongoing efforts to minimize the footprint and potential impacts of our proposed quarry operations.”

The hearing at Paul Robeson Auditorium on the campus of Central State University included a second round of public hearing comments, presentations from CEMEX, Vectren, a hydrologist and a real estate expert, plus the reading of a favorable recommendation from the Greene County Regional Planning Commission.

After that, the commission voted 5-0 to move the application ahead to the 3-member Board of Trustees with some recommendations to protect homeowners and a bond for the reclamation of the land.

“This is what we expected to happen,” said Beverly Craig, who owns a property on Hyde Road. “Volunteer (commission members) have a tendency to pass the ball to the elected officials. We anticipated the outcome and we’re going to continue fighting.”

Blue-shirted CEMEX employees and other residents were represented nearly half and half of the estimated 150 people in attendance during the public hearing.

CEMEX employees touted the good-paying jobs, economic impact, the lower cost to southern Ohio builders needing cement and the watchdog role that the company’s union takes.

Homeowners living near CEMEX’s operations mentioned orange dust that they say sometimes coats their lawns, Vectren’s 18-inch gas pipeline that runs through the property, plus voiced concerns about water quality, structural damage and potentially lower home values.

“I’d sell my house right now if I could get what we paid for it out of it,” said Craig, who added she bought the property less than three years ago and that the realtor didn’t know CEMEX owned land across the road. “I’d sell it to any people CEMEX people that would care to live there.”

CEMEX officials briefly addressed some questions, but leaned on testimony from experts they paid for and/or the commission arranged to study water, the gas line and real estate values.

“CEMEX would be responsible for any damages that would occur due to our blasting to structures or the wells,” Engdahl said. “However, with that said, the blasts that we will be doing in location to these homes, they’re not going to be strong enough to be able to cause that kind of damage.”

Some homeowners said the issue is far from over, even planning to get the issue put on a future ballot.

“I think (the commission) worked hard to be fair, but the outcome was probably already cast in stone,” Craig said. “CEMEX is powerful. We’re not, but we might be able to figure out how to get powerful.”

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-6951 or mgokavi@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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