According to the conditional use permit that Meyer agreed to back in 2008, they would mine next to the Fox Trails subdivision until June 1, 2016. Any time over that deadline, Meyer would be subjected to $100,000 per month fine.
The fact of the matter: Meyer can't finish and doesn't want to live up to its end of the bargain.
They tried this back in 2012 and, after not receiving the blessing of the zoning board, they withdrew the petition.
Since then, Meyer Material has not added additional equipment or workers to get the job done in time and is just expecting to get the extension.
Back in 2012, Meyer claimed the economic downturn made it impossible for them to finish in time. Now, they are claiming that in addition to the economy, there are two more reasons why they can't finish in time:
- "Unanticipated overburden volumes." In other words, too much dirt on top of the gravel.
- "Operational hours." This is great. They are complaining that the agreement they made to mine during the week from 7:30 am to 7:30 pm has placed too much of a burden on their ability to complete the mining in time.
Should the residents of Cary be responsible for the business decisions of Meyer Material? They supposedly did core samples of the overburden back pre-2008. Did they not do enough? If they couldn't get the mining done during the time allotted, why did they agree to the permit in the first place?
Also, we have to remember that Meyer Material is owned by Aggregate Industries, which is owned by Holcim, Ltd. Holcim is a multinational corporation headquartered in Switzerland and operates in over 70 countries. In 2013, Holcim's revenue was over $16 billion.
In its presentation to the board, Meyer Material will claim to be a "good corporate citizen." They'll talk about giving science tours to kids and maintaining Cary parks.
It all comes down to this: Meyer Material (aka Holcim, Ltd) doesn't want to pay its fines and has threatened to walk away from the site leaving it as is. This is not an example of a "good corporate citizen."
In the end, Meyer should live up to its original agreement and pay the fines they agreed to back in 2008. If they break it, they should be sued for breach of contract. All of us have been affected by the economic turndown but we can't simply change the terms of our mortgages. Neither should Meyer.
In addition to wanting an extension to its mining operation, Meyer is also asking the Village for a reduction in the amount of credit they need to provide for Land Conservation and the Impact Fees. Why they want this is unknown. Click here to see the documentation.
As the Village ponders the requests Meyer is making, these points need to be considered:
- What's to stop Meyer from asking for another extension in 2019? And another after that?
- If the extension is granted, will Meyer be financially penalized for not living up to the deal? Getting extensions should not be a rubber-stamp.
- Since 2008, the Consumer Price Index has increased about 9%. Therefore, the $250,000 that Meyer pays the village every year is no longer worth $250,000. This should be addressed.
- If Meyer is threatening to walk away from the site if it doesn't get its way, why lower the amount in the letters of credit? Shouldn't the Village better protect itself from that action?
- Originally, Meyer stated that they need two years to reclaim the land and turn it into a park. Now, they say they can do it in a year. How so? Why can they speed up that process but not the mining?
It is time to stop caving into the desires of a multinational corporation. It is time to hold them accountable.
-------------
If you would like to view the Meyer presentation, click here.
If you would like to read the original agreement, click here.
Meyer will be presenting this information at the Village Board meeting on Tuesday, July 7. The meeting begins at 7:30 pm.
In the meantime, let your Village Trustees know what you think about the matter. You can send a message via Cary Connection on Facebook, or email them directly. Be aware that many village trustees do not use village emails, but their own personal email accounts in order to not be required to keep a paper trail. So it is recommended that you save any correspondence you may have with Village trustees.
Mayor Mark Kownick (mkownick@caryillinois.com)
Trustee David Chapman (dchapman@caryillinois.com)
Trustee Jim Cosler (jcosler@caryillinois.com)
Trustee Kimberly Covelli (kcovelli@caryillinois.com)
Trustee Duane (Rick) Dudek (rdudek@caryillinois.com)
Trustee Jeffery Kraus (jkraus@caryillinois.com)
Trustee Ellen McAlpine (emcalpine@caryillinois.com)
1 comment:
wow, great, I was wondering how to cure acne naturally. and found your site by google, learned a lot, now i’m a bit clear. I’ve bookmark your site and also add rss. keep us updated. Core spun Melange
Post a Comment