A petition to rezone land for a borrow pit that has drawn opposition from neighbors was unanimously recommended for approval by the Liberty Consolidated Planning Commission.

The commission had tabled the rezoning request — from R-1, single-family residential, to A-1, agricultural — after neighbors expressed opposition in December and so that LCPC members could hear from the borrow pit’s owner. The pit is on property at the corner of Islands Highway and Brigdon Road.

Case for borrow pit

Trent Long of T.R. Long Engineering P.C.. who has been working with Claude Dryden, the owner of Dryden Enterprises, on the borrow pit, came before the planning commissioners again to address problems discussed at the last meeting about the water drainage.

Long said that immediately southeast of the discharge area is a cross-drainage system that travels underneath Islands Highway. The water, he said, would discharge into a ditch on the opposite side and onto property that Dryden also owns, then travel northeast. Dryden’s property is also next to land owned by the Liberty County Development Authority that was once used for timber harvesting. Water will also flow onto this property, continue north, cross under Sunbury Road and into a marsh. He said water will only travel around 4 feet in the ditch along Islands Highway before going into the cross drain.

Previously, Long said Dryden started the borrow pit but has reached a point where a permit is needed and the land has to be rezoned.

Planning Commissioner Phil Odom said a borrow pit of up to 1 acre is permissible without a permit. Once the pit reaches that size, the property owner has to file for a land-mining permit with the Environment Protection Division.

After realizing that the pit was more than an acre and required another permit, Dryden continued working until he was able to reach a stopping point, Long said at the previous meeting.

Dryden has had other borrow pits excavated “in a similar manner where a little work was done before EPD got there … and that had not been an issue,” Long said. “So when we moved forward (with the current pit) we were under the same presumption, getting ready for EPD, well within our means. EPD has actually been back to the site based on some of the complaints made here at LCPC and to the EPD.”

He said that the inspection went well, and EPD is ready to issue a permit pending the zoning.

Dirt from the borrow pit is not for sale, Long said. Rather, it is for Dryden’s personal use and projects. After the dirt is extracted, the pit will be reclaimed as a pond.

Odom took issue with the cross drainage.

“This drainage goes under Islands Highway and goes directly into (a neighbor’s) property, not Mr. Dryden’s property,” Odom said.

“I’ll check that. When I went out there two weeks ago, it appeared that it goes on Mr. Dryden’s property,” Long said.

“It appears to be, but when you get out there and look … that ditch is completely filled in by that timber operation. It’s not taking drainage away from that site. It stays there,” Odom said.

Long said he walked to the back of Dryden’s property to make sure that everything was flowing correctly and not backing up on Islands Highway. He said the water drains slowly because the area is somewhat filled up, but the water is still leaving the site and flowing northeast.

Planning Commissioner Timothy Byler asked how long the dirt will be stockpiled on the property. Long answered that it depends on Dryden’s need for dirt. The borrow pit is to serve as a long-term source for soil. Long added that he and Dryden made sure there was at least 100 feet of buffer from the right-of-way.

“You can’t see through when you drive,” Long said. “Eventually, the thought is that there will be a couple of houses with a nice lake behind them.”

Dryden, who was not present at the December meeting, told commissioners Jan. 19 that someone from EPD inspected the site and was satisfied with the process. He added that the EPD official did ask him to stop any work on the borrow pit pending the rezoning.

“So we stopped,” Dryden said. “We weren’t doing anything that we didn’t think was OK.”

Opposition

Five people spoke against the rezoning.

Neighbor Martha Dykes said the borrow pit doesn’t look like it’s the required 100 feet from the right-of-way, has never seen the cross drain and doesn’t think the plan is feasible.

“There’s no way you can pump enough water out and dig dirt and stockpile it and keep the water down without pumping it,” she said. “It’s not feasible.”

Odom said there are several options for where the water can drain, which included retention ponds at Tradeport East Business Center located some distance behind Dorchester Village Civic Center, and another small drainage way.

Dykes offered her own suggestions, such as Dryden getting an easement (the right for one person to use another’s property for a specific purpose) from property owners all the way back to Dorchester Village Road or using collapsible pipe to route the water toward that road.

Neighbor Ronda Durney brought pictures of the ditch, water drainage and other ditches in the area for commissioners. She said she saw an affidavit saying that the property had proper zoning, which she said is not true; other permits, including ones for draining into the ditch along the highway and into a wetland area are required; and tests have to be conducted on the water before it’s discharged.

“If Dryden Enterprises wants to have a borrow pit they need to act in a legal manner and drain the water the same way the Dykes family did. … It will be an expense to them, … but numerous properties will be safeguarded, including natural habitats,” Durney said. “I’m asking that Liberty County take responsibility to continuously monitor this project to ensure full cooperation.”

Jim Cooler is the owner of two separate properties that are next to Dryden’s properties on both sides of Islands Highway. Years ago, Cooler had a borrow pit on one of his properties. About eight to 10 months later, he said, he started to lose oak trees. He didn’t correlate the two events until after the excavation. Cooler said oak trees will be lost, changing both his and Dryden’s properties, and possibly causing a decrease in value.

Cooler is also on the board of Dorchester Village Civic Center Board of Directors.

“If we turned that swamp back into a muddy quagmire, will that affect outdoor activities?” he asked.

Barbara Martin, head of the board of directors at Dorchester Village Civic Center, shared Cooler’s concerns. She added that if water is draining behind the center, it can create a breeding ground for mosquitoes, which can have an adverse effect on the property and outdoor functions such as weddings and reunions. Martin said a lot of work and money was put into restoring the school, and she doesn’t want anything to harm what was done.

Wendy Bush moved to the area because she found it quiet, pretty and away from development. She is concerned over more traffic and noise in the area, the effect on the value of properties and called the stockpiled dirt an eyesore.

Further explanation

Long came back to address some of the concerns raised.

He said the Dykes family pit followed a natural drainage way that is different when compared to Dryden’s pit. There will be pumping involved in Dryden’s pit, but not constantly. He and Dryden agreed that work needs to be done in the ditch across the street connected to the cross drain so the water can go the right way. Long said he doesn’t want there to be an impact on the center and that he and Dryden will talk with LCDA. The water is supposed to flow a quarter-mile away from the center. Where the water will drain off on to Dryden’s property and part of the LCDA’s is a lower elevation. The lower elevation will allow the water to flow toward Sunbury Road. Long said that there will be a sediment basin near the borrow pit. The sediment will settle at the bottom of the basin so clean water will discharge. He said that the permits Durney mentioned are not required, just the one EPD is waiting to issue.

Byler expressed concern over residents in the area having protection against something going wrong with the drainage.

Odom made a motion to approve the rezoning with an added special condition that Dryden work with the Liberty County Public Works Department and the Liberty County Development Authority for all discharge water to go through their land.

“Can we demand that from the Development Authority?” Planning Commissioner Lynn Pace asked.

LCPC Executive Director Jeff Ricketson answered, “I think that the motion is for Dryden to try to work with those entities, but you really can’t force them.”

The petition will go before the Liberty County Board of Commissioners for the final vote during the board’s next Feb. 6 meeting, which starts at 6 p.m. at the Courthouse Annex building.