I was taking a Sunday drive with my family up along the river yesterday, and we drove up Route 26 (we took it to the bridge in Lacon and came back down Route 29 on the west side of the river). All along Route 26 from Route 116 to Spring Bay were signs saying “Stop the Gravel Pit.”

Well, of course I had to find out what that was all about. There’s a website dedicated to the issue called stopthepit.info. Here’s their explanation:

The proposed site is bordered by Route 26, Spring Beach Road, Sunset Drive and the Illinois River, located 2 miles north of the Thornton’s gas station. This site directly borders numerous neighborhoods where heavy residential investment has occurred over the past 10 years, and this location is already burdened with truck and commercial traffic….

The proposed gravel pit would be operated by East Peoria Materials, LLC (Carrie Scharf Materials), on approximately 200 acres of agricultural land leased from the Dubois family. East Peoria Materials, LLC has applied for rezoning of the property by the Woodford County Zoning Board of Appeals and the Woodford County Board. The rezoning would change the property from Agricultural to Conservation use, and then grant an exception for use of the property to operate a gravel pit. This matter is under consideration by Woodford County, with public hearings scheduled in early September.

The residents are concerned about lower property values and decreased quality of life resulting from increased truck traffic traffic, noise, and dust along Route 26. They’re also concerned that this gravel pit could cause damage to well water and the Illinois River. One of their frequently asked questions is, “One of the land parcels adjoins the river. Can they put in a barge terminal?” Answer:

The adjacency to the river does indeed make a barge terminal possible. Should that develop, Peoria Lake would no longer be an attractive scenic Peoria feature. The fish and wildlife population would also be affected. Barge terminals do not attract waterfowl, and the Lake is a major stop on the flyway.

Peoria has a barge terminal down by Darst Street on the south end, and they can handle gravel. If the gravel pit is approved, one would think that if they utilized Peoria’s barge terminal, it would result in more trucks, dust, and noise along Route 26, whereas putting in a barge terminal at the gravel pit would reduce those problems. It makes me wonder why they’re opposed to the terminal. On the other hand, I suppose we really don’t want to see barge terminals all up and down the river either.

An unrelated gravel pit in the northwestern Chicago suburb of Cary, Illinois, prompted concerned citizens to put together this protest video I found on Google Video:

While it’s a different company in a different community, it is the same kind of operation that would result in the same kind of noise, dust, and proximity to residential land use. The residents south of Spring Bay haven’t made any videos yet, but they do have a plan to fight the gravel pit:

Our approach is to pursue denial of the rezoning, to ensure we do not suffer the negative consequences of a gravel pit installation adjacent to our properties and high traffic areas. We are organized into volunteer committees consisting of Executive, Communications, Real Estate Tax, Environmental, Gravel Pit, Fundraising and several other committees. To ensure the effectiveness of our efforts, we have also retained the firm of Hasselberg, Rock, Bell and Kuppler, LLP.

More power to them. If they’re anywhere near as effective as Peoria Families Against Toxic Waste, I think they have a good chance of succeeding.