Morristown quarry rejected while proposed industrial park wins Act 250 permit
Vermont’s District 5 Act 250 Commission rejected the quarry component of a proposed industrial park in Morristown, citing conflicts with local rules, inadequate dust controls, likely air-pollution risks and undue effects on the surrounding landscape.
The broader industrial-park proposal was approved, according to the commission’s findings as reported by Seven Days and the state’s Act 250 agenda. The immediate question is how the project can be built without the rock-extraction operation that was intended to provide construction material and generate commercial sales.
What was proposed
Act 250 project 5L1614-1 covers 2322 Laporte Road, west of Vermont Route 100 and across from the Morrisville-Stowe Airport. The industrial park would occupy an 89-acre sub-parcel of a larger 437-acre property in Morristown’s IND 5 industrial district.
The plan includes 26 industrial lots, buildings, roads, utilities, wastewater infrastructure, water systems and related site improvements. The proposed water-supply well, treatment building and storage facility would be located on another sub-parcel of the larger property between Cochran and Stagecoach roads, according to the Vermont Act 250 project listing.
During construction, the applicant proposed removing rock from a bedrock knoll on the southern portion of the 89-acre site. The state’s project description says the rock would be processed and used for project infrastructure, with remaining material sold commercially. After extraction, the area would be reclaimed and used for industrial lots.
Seven Days reported that the proposed operation would remove about 35,000 tons of material a year for roughly a decade. The commission approved the business park but rejected that quarry component.
Why the commission rejected the quarry
The commission found that quarrying was not allowed in that part of Morristown under the town’s own rules. The applicant had argued that the excavation was temporary and incidental to grading the site for the industrial park.
The commission disagreed. Its findings said removing an 8.5-acre rock hill over a decade could not be considered incidental in the ordinary meaning of the word, according to Seven Days’ account of the decision.
Commissioners also found the proposed dust controls inadequate. The plan included measures such as watering areas during blasting and crushing, but the commission concluded that the quarry could be a dangerous source of air pollution.
The decision also addressed the project’s effects on the surrounding community. The commission cited noise, dust and truck traffic, including about 30 truck trips a day, as contributing to an undue aesthetic effect. Its findings described the proposed disturbance as “offensive and shocking” when compared with the existing forested and agricultural setting.
Those were reasons for denying the proposed operation. They were not a finding that unlawful pollution had already occurred at the site.
What remains possible for the industrial park
The quarry denial did not invalidate the broader industrial-park permit. The official Act 250 agenda lists project 5L1614-1 as a permit issued July 27, 2026, and Seven Days reported that the commission approved the park while rejecting the quarry.
It remains unclear whether the applicant will redesign the project, buy construction material from another source, seek a revised approval or abandon the development. Seven Days reported that developer Garret Hirchak and his attorney had not immediately responded to requests for comment.
The quarry decision could materially change the project’s construction and financing plan. The extracted rock was intended for roads and utilities, while surplus sales were expected to help support the project. Seven Days reported an estimated $8 million in construction costs, but the available record does not establish whether the park can proceed under its existing engineering and financial plan without on-site extraction.
What Morristown residents should watch
Residents tracking the project should watch the Act 250 record for revised site-work plans, notices about alternative sources of fill or aggregate, and filings that explain how the permitted industrial park will address the quarry denial.
An appeal is also possible. Under 10 V.S.A. § 8504, an aggrieved person or party by right generally has 30 days from the legally operative date of a District Commission decision to appeal to the Environmental Division, subject to the statute’s eligibility and notice requirements. The exact deadline should be confirmed from the final decision before publication or reliance on a filing date.
No appeal should be assumed unless it appears in the Act 250 or court records.
For future filings, residents can search Vermont’s Act 250 database under project number 5L1614-1. That record will show whether the permitted industrial park is modified, challenged or pursued without the proposed quarry.
Sources
- Vermont Act 250 agenda and status page
- Seven Days: Proposed Morristown Quarry Rejected As 'Shocking and Offensive'
- 10 V.S.A. § 8504
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