The Extent of the New Pit

Over the last couple of weeks, we have talked to many people all over Cary who are not only opposed to the pit, but also are unsure as to the extent of the proposed pit. Many people think the pit will encompass only the parcel of land zoned residential immediately to the west of Fox Trails. This is not true as the map published in today's Northwest Herald shows:

This pit will also encompass the land in Cary along Route 31. This land is zoned commercial/retail. When the current zoning laws were put in place for the land that Meyer now owns, a complex of stores, multifamily and single family homes were envisioned. In fact, the village spent tax payer dollars to provide sewer and other utilities to the area. The hook-ups are there and would be destroyed if Meyer turns this land into a giant hole.

This pit will double the size of the current pit and will affect more than just Fox Trails:

• Greenfields and Cimarron will feel the presence of the pit in terms of dust and noise
• Those using Hoffman Park will not only hear the pit but will be breathing in dust and other particulates while walking, jogging or riding bikes along the path
• Kids will have easy access from Hoffman park to go "exploring" the pit
• Stores directly across from the pit on Route 31 will have to contend with dust, noise and trucks
• Pauly Toyota will have a new storefront located just north of the pit. Their new car-lots will be covered in a constant layer of dust
• Walmart customers will also be subjected to dust and noise when visiting the store located on Route 31 just north of the pit
• The village of Cary and, consequently all of Cary, will suffer as the sales revenue and the property tax revenue from homes and stores will not come in. We will be left with a giant hole in the ground--a worthless and dangerous eyesore

The pit is a bad idea not only for Cary, but for the entire area. Please come to the next Zoning Board meeting to be held on Thursday, July 12 at 7:30 at the Holiday Inn in Crystal Lake.

HELP US MAKE A NEW VIDEO!

Do you want to act in a new anti-gravel pit video?

We are in the process of creating a new video to show the community (and the world) our displeasure with the idea of making Cary a gravel pit community.

We need people involved. I don't want to give away to much with what we plan to do.....but, if you are interested, please contact us. We need all sorts of people, including children, to partake in our latest endeavor. This video is guaranteed to bring more attention to the pit issue.

Contact us at:

no_cary_quarry@yahoo.com

More work to be done....

There was a pretty good turnout at last night's zoning board meeting. It was nice getting to talk and meet with many of the those who came. There was a crowd of about 150 people. But, in order to truly stop this from happening, we need more people. We need to blanket the room with people---standing room only and then some.

One thing that will help our campaign is to create "media moments." Papers love to publish images that are provocative. Therefore, we have made available some products to help spread our message. Imagine if everyone at the meeting had one of these:



We designed the products and they are made by Cafe Press. They charge a base price for each product and then we mark up the price by only 50 cents to $1. The purpose of providing these products is not to make money, but to spread a message. What little money is made will help defray the cost of flyers, signs and buttons, etc.

Click here to enter the store and see what is available. We need to get as many people in Cary as we can to understand the impact that this pit will have on the entire community.

http://www.cafepress.com/no_quarry

Zoning Board Meeting TONIGHT!

The time has come. The Zoning Board meeting is TONIGHT at 7:30 at the Holiday Inn in Crystal Lake. Over the past couple of weeks, we have blanketed Cary with flyers, send out emails and letters to the paper...and managed to get some nice media coverage.

But the task is not complete. We need as many people as possible to come out to tonight's meeting. There is strength in numbers.

We will be presenting the Board with a petition of over 200 names of Cary residents opposed to the gravel pit. And the amazing thing is this: the names come from ALL OVER CARY---not just in the Fox Trails subdivision.

See you at the meeting. The time to stop the pit is NOW!



NOTE: Members of the press can download a large, high resolution version of the above image here.

NIMBY....not quite

I just received an email that stated, "I suspect you are NIMBYS." That was the second such email that I received. It was a term I had not heard much, but it was used both times as a pejorative.

So, I did some research.

The term NIMBY was first used in 1980, so it is a relatively recent word used to describe people who oppose certain land developments in or near their homes, such as landfills, garbage transfer facilities, commercial developments (ie Walmart), etc. However, the term has grown in the last decade to describe people who do not want ANY development and has been used in a more negative way. Hence the two emails.

Let's just clear something up. We are opposed to a GRAVEL PIT being created on the land. That's it. Plain and simple.

The area adjacent to Fox Trails is zoned for residential. We would like to keep it that way. So if Meyer wants to sell the land to a developer....by all means, they have the right. We knew that land was zoned residential when we bought our home 5 years ago and would not oppose such use. (As it stands...Meyer also knew that land was zoned residential but now want to change the law)

A residential development would benefit all of Cary so much more than a gravel pit. Let's look at the statistics:

• The gravel pit would generate only $170 a year or so in real estate taxes per acre. This is why Meyer has offered the village a "donation" of $250,000 a year for the length of the extended use permit.
• A single family home generates over $5000 in real estate taxes on 1/4 of an acre. So, you put up homes and real estate taxes generated by those homes are over $24,000 for an acre of land.

So, we are not technically NIMBYS. We don't oppose any development. We just don't want a new gravel pit next to our neighborhood.

So perhaps we are No Gravel Pit in Our Back Yards type of people.

But we wouldn't want one in your backyard, either.

Cary, Illinois: A Gravel Pit Community?

Check out our new mini-documentary about the proposed gravel pit in Cary. We cannot let Meyer get away with this. Pass this video on to others---the more who see it the better!

Note: This video is 4 minutes long and may take a little bit to load completely. Please be patient.




The video can also be found at Google Video: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6546217386573707509&hl=en