The Lafarge Fox River Quarry has asked South Elgin to temporarily extend its hours to 10 p.m. weeknights to catch up on mining operations slowed by the pandemic but village officials say they’re worried about the impact on the neighborhood.
Lafarge Holcim is requesting for later above-ground operation times for up to six months because the company has taken a financial hit by having to slow, stop or completely shut down production at its Elburn Algonquin, and Marengo quarries, regional manager Randi Wille told South Elgin trustees last week.
Demand for the kind of materials mined at the McLean Boulevard quarry is high right now because it’s the start of the road construction season, General Manager Yuliya Kravtsov said.
“The state right now and state suppliers are relying on the Fox River quarry to be working and supplying stone for the major projects,” Kravtsov said.
The quarry’s current above-ground operations are 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Underground mining operates 24 hours a day.
South Elgin trustees said the later-night work could create dust and traffic problems and noise could disturb surrounding neighborhoods.
“It’s going to be more than just the conveyors running to … build your search piles,” Trustee Lisa Guess said. “There’s going to be loaders, your pit trucks, there’s going to be backup beepers and those things.”
Some board members are open to the extension but only to 8 or 9 p.m. weeknights and only for a maximum of three months. At the end of that time period, the board could reevaluate the situation and possibly extend it another three months, some suggested.
Trustee Mike Kolodziej said Lafarge Holcim’s request did not explain what economic hardships the company is facing to justify the later hours, which is the only way they can justify it to residents.
“If for some reason you go longer than 10 o’clock on a given night, now we’re dealing with people giving us calls at 10:15, 11 o’clock,” he said.
Some residents in the Sugar Ridge neighborhood, near South McLean Boulevard and Stearns Road, still raise concerns over the dust coming from the quarry, Kolodziej said. “They certainly are not going to be fans if we decide to extend it by four hours,” he said.
Kravtsov said the company has “a number of projects we’re trying to create in order to eliminate the dust and improve our quarry, and we’re working on this very hard.”
“Right now, the challenge for us is we’re trying to space out our employees and space out the trucks and space out how frequently those trucks show up. … We ask you for your help in order to do that,” Kravtsov said.
Trustee Scott Richmond said he supported Lafarge Holcim’s request.
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“Why are some of us trying to tell them they shouldn’t have a good business? If there’s a supply and demand out there, businesses should be allowed to meet them,” Richmond said. “So many businesses right now are shut down.”
The issue is to return to the board for a vote at a later date.