McConnells mine expansion hearing delayed

Efforts to expand a dirt mine near Historic Brattonsville in the McConnells area were put on hold Thursday.

Representatives for Robert Clawson requested the York County Zoning Board of Appeals defer action on expanding an existing dirt mine. No explanation was offered to the board for the deferral and no date was set for the board to hear the request for a special exception needed to expand the current mine.

The representative said Clawson requested the delay as there are recent issues that need to be addressed. The representative did not say what the issues were.

The York County Culture & Heritage Museums, which operates Historic Brattonsville, oppose expanding the existing mine from 5 to 25 acres.

Carey Tilley, director of the York County Culture & Heritage Museums, said Thursday they respect Clawson’s right to defer but were surprised by his actions. Tilley and other members of the museum board were prepared to argue against expanding the mine before the zoning board Thursday.

Tilley said expanding the mine is not conducive to visitors’ experience at Historic Brattonsville. Tilley also said he was concerned about increased truck traffic posing a safety hazard, as well as potentially harming historic buildings near Brattonsville Road.

In other action Thursday, the zoning board approved a special exception for a 34-acre mine on Benfield Road owned by Omarr LLC. The property has been used for about 20 years as a mine for the S.C. Department of Transportation, a use that did not require York County approval.

The owners of Omarr LLC want to expand the mine from 10 acres to 34 acres and sell the pit gravel to commercial customers as well as to the S.C. DOT.

This story was originally published April 9, 2015 at 9:20 PM with the headline "McConnells mine expansion hearing delayed."