HomeMy WebLinkAboutC.054.93011_1636Mike McLain (owner applicant): I thank you for this forum to express our views. I am a fourth generation
farmer. My home is on the form we are proposing to rezone. My wife, Janet, and I, have two five-year- old
kids. We have a vested interest in this community just like our neighbors. Our well is 400 feet deep, and we
use the same water our neighbors use. The prevailing wind blows from west to east. The proposed site is west
of us We smell the same odors from the west --just like our neighbors Our proposed facility will rat
contaminate our water or the air we breathe. I'm certain my family and neighbors will be totally safe from this
venture. There area few things that have come up with the 500 ft. setback. We will ogree to the 500 foot
setback and move this facility up the hill to accommodate our neighbors Also, we will move the driveway from
its present location and move it further west. One comment I have about truck traffic. Yesterday we were
harvesting corn silage and we chopped 85 truck loads Each truckload went on Snow Creek Road and most of it
was hauled after everybody hodgone to work I don't it -- if everybody saw those trucks I'm surethey
probably saw some before they went to work, and they saw some when theygot home. But, each load thatgot
on the road was off of the road, before the next one got back on So there is plenty of time between trucks,
and that's 85 trucks in one day.
Jonet W1 (proponent): I live on the Snow Creek Road I lived in town before marrying and moving to the
farm. Residing among those who make their living by forminggives one a newfound respect for agriculture and
how much we depend on these individuals I quickly realized that farming is a high-risk occupation. Most people
do not have their income based on the weather -working more than 12 hours a day, with no overtime, or
weekends off. farmers do not have aguaranteed paycheck with benefits. People who move to the country
sometimes think that it is all quiet with birds and wildlife that abound. We need to remember, when we move to
the country, itis nota country club, o residential development, or a hunting preserve. forming iso business
that provides our food and raw materials for consumer goods. All of this takes machinery, and most of all, we
need to remember the farmers were in the country before anyone decided to move to the country for the
quote unquote Good Life. The biodiese/ production proposed is being done by a farmer family that has been
good neighbors and stewards of the land for the past 26 years that I have lived there. Agri-business must
keep up with the times by implementing new ideas. If farmers do not find ways to make a profit, the land
becomes too expensive and usually the next things you see growing are housing developments Biodiese/ has
been developed to expand the use of agriculture products as an environmentally safe method of alternative
fuels I applaud the McLain family for forward thinking to keep forming one of the leading industries in Iredell
County. In keeping with the slogan of Iredell being the Crossroads of the future, I encourage the
commissioners to support sustainable agriculture in Iredell County.
Randy &edges (opponent): I live at 991 Snow Creek Road with my wife. You have heard many of the reasons
why my neighbors and I believe that this biodiesel refinery should be located in an industrial park. Let me
reiterate that the issue that you will be deciding tonight is not the merits of biodiesel. The true issue is simply
whether the proposed site is appropriate and whether its location will, in the words of the conditional use
zoning ordinance, inaterially endanger the public health or safety if located where proposed, and that the
location and character will be in harmony with the area in which it is to be located.' As to the character of our
geographic area, an area lying between Highway 901 to the north, arra Sullivan farm Road and Fort Dobbs Road
to the south, and lying between Highway 115 to the west and Jennings Road and Highway 21 to the east, there
are 39,000 plus acres, and there are only 129 acres zoned for arty "of commercial use within that boundary.
I would like to introduce the zoning map as evidence to that. Our neighborhood has been stable. In fact
according to the Iredell County Building permit records, for the lost 10 years there have been 25 building
permits One was a modular home that replaced a dwelling that was torn down. There were many decks and
remodels There were no net increases in dwellings on Snow Creek Road in the last 10 years I have a copy of a
report prepared by Steve Warren to that effect that I would like to introduce. How can the petitioners ask
the Leaches, the Pitts, the Mishoes, the Wards, the Reavises, the Bridges, and all the other farm families to
subsidize the cost of the refinery by plummeting property values and increased insurance rates due to the
proximity of an industrial site. I also would like to introduce the disclosure form required at the sale of a
residential property by North Carolina General Statute 47(e) that requires you to disclose commercial or
industrial use. It says, ioise, odor, smoke, etcaffecting the property' Of critical importance to all citizens
of Iredell County is in that approval of this petition will set a legal precedent of industrial sites in residential
communities On whatgrounds then will the commissioners be able to deny future petitions for heavy industry
in any other residential neighborhood.
Juanita &edges (opponent): I'm Juanita Bridges, the wife to Randy. You know, the other evening we were out
on our patio, and we've lived on Snow Creek Road for 30 years It's our home -- it's a good home. We've raised
two fine sons there, and our grandchildren visit and play in our yard almost every week. It's o magical place to
live with a// the stars twinkling and a full moon. We have a little frog pond that's right outside, and the bugs
flit around it. We listen to cicadas and their music. How lucky can we be;, But overshadowing this idyllic
setting was the thought that this maybe our last year to enjoy our little piece of heaven. We feel safe in our
own home and comfortable with ourgrandkids playing in the yard. Why? Because we've read al/ these reports
of explosions of biodiese/ plants, of raging fires that fire departments are not equipped to control, and the
evacuations of surrounding homes We've researched the respiratory problems caused by exposure to even
minute quantities of dust from the sodium hydroxide used in the process We've read of the necessity of full
biohazard suits, gloves and respirators when handling these chemicals We dread the tanker trucks coming in
and out at all hours of the day to transfer the methanol and caustic chemicals from truck to tank and tank to
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