Washington County residents express concerns over red dirt mine expansion

Sheriff’s Office pay plan OK’d

The Washington County Courthouse in Fayetteville.
The Washington County Courthouse in Fayetteville.

FAYETTEVILLE -- Residents of the Wedington Woods area west of Fayetteville went to the county courthouse on Thursday hoping to block the expansion of a red dirt mine in the area.

The residents spoke during the public comment period of the Quorum Court meeting expressing their opposition to an expansion of the Eco-Friendly Materials LLC operation.

Lisa Davison told justices of the peace she has lived in her home in Wedington Woods for 38 years. She said the proposed expansion would bring the dirt mining operation within a few yards of her home. Davison said she suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, which is aggravated by the constant noise of the trucks and heavy equipment, along with the blasting done at the quarry site. She said the dirt mine has driven animals from the neighborhood and leaves her home filled with red dust that she is unable to clean up or filter out.

The neighbors complained that they were not given adequate notice of the proposed expansion and that the mining operation should be required to go through the county's conditional use permit process and to comply with state and federal laws and regulations.

Jake Newcomb, an attorney representing one of the neighbors, argued that the expansion of the mining operations precludes any argument that the use was "grandfathered in" by existing before the county ordinance took effect.

Newcomb also mentioned an inspection report from the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality that listed several deficiencies in the mining operation. A copy of the report listed unpermitted outfalls of water on the site, allowing stormwater to bypass a sedimentation pond on the property. The report also indicated there were three additional disturbed areas on the property that were not part of the permit. According to the report, the berms on the sedimentation pond are overgrown with trees and other vegetation that lowered the capacity of the pond by several feet and allows stormwater to bypass the permitted outfall. The report also noted several instances where water sampling or inspections were not documented or did not occur.

The issue was not on the agenda for Thursday's meeting, so no action was taken. Some of the residents were asking justices of the peace after Thursday's meeting how they can get a place on the Quorum Court's agenda to have their concerns addressed.

The Quorum Court did approve a Sheriff's Office plan that will increase pay for Detention Center and communications employees at a cost of about $667,000 for the remainder of 2022.

Chief Deputy Jay Cantrell told the county's Finance and Budget Committee on June 7 the Sheriff's Office had unfilled positions so no new money will be required this year.

Cantrell said the Sheriff's Office had about $222,000 in unspent salaries for the first quarter of the year. The Sheriff's Office has about 40 open positions in the Detention Center and another seven in the dispatch center.

Sheriff Tim Helder told the county's Personnel Committee on June 6 that the new pay plan is modeled after one used by the Fayetteville Police Department. Helder told the justices of the peace the county is finding it harder to recruit and retain employees, saying "we don't match up to our peers" in pay.

The committee also endorsed a number of title changes within the Sheriff's Office. Cantrell said the changes were mostly "a bookkeeping" matter that allows employees to be moved up in pay when they have reached certain training requirements or time in a pay grade without having to go through the process of changing their job title.

The justices of the peace also approved Helder's request to hire a legal adviser for the Sheriff's Office. The position would have a pay range from about $72,000 to about $96,000. The money for the position would come from eliminating two other positions in the Sheriff's Office budget that are currently unfilled.

The Finance and Budget Committee voted to send an ordinance creating the new position to the full Quorum Court for consideration.

Helder told the county's Personnel Committee on June 6 the Sheriff's Office needs someone with expertise in law enforcement and detention issues to work with the rest of the command staff. He said there is "an uptick" in the number of lawsuits being filed against the Sheriff's Office and the trend nationally is that such lawsuits are increasing elsewhere. Helder said his office specifically "is inundated with FOI requests" and a recent lawsuit shows the need to have information reviewed to be certain it can be released. Helder said the legal counsel can also assist with training and education for Sheriff's Office employees.

The justices of the peace also approved an ordinance accepting about $904,000 in state grant money in the Department of Emergency Management grant fund. About $555,000 of the money will go for machinery and equipment for the urban search and rescue program, the SWAT program and other emergency programs.

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Grandfather clause

A clause in a statute or zoning ordinance which permits the operator of a business or a land owner to be exempt from restrictions on use if the business or property continues to be used as it was when the law was adopted. Upon passage of the statute or regulation, the specific property may be referred to as “grandfathered in.” Example: The city passes an ordinance which does not permit retail businesses in a particular zone, but any existing store can continue to function in the area, even with new owners. However, if the premises stop being a retail outlet then the grandfather clause will lapse.

Source: Law.com

 


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