Residents Link Property Use, Value

But there are few statistics to back up the claims.

Historically, residents near both the quarry and landfill have expressed their frustration and dissatisfaction with the effects of those land uses on local neighborhoods.

They say the landfill and quarry have caused a lowered social and economic status for the people living in these areas.

The Orange County Regional Landfill was created in 1972 along Rogers and Eubanks roads, an area that was still rural at that time. But with the development of neighborhoods within its vicinity, the landfill has caused an outpouring of complaints.

"The perception of the (residents) is that it has had a negative impact," said Gayle Wilson, an administrator with the landfill. "But if you ask what are those problems, they will have a short list."

Although administrators for these areas maintain that the quarry and landfill are not the cause of these alleged negative social and economic effects, residents still argue otherwise.

"It devalued the property and upset the quality of living," said resident Melvin Parrish in regards to the expanding quarry near his home. "I am disappointed with Chapel Hill and what they have done to me, a taxpayer."

The complaints coming from residents around the landfill have focused on the contaminated water that was allegedly caused by debris in the landfill.

Residents say the water was not only causing illness but also that it was a main reason for the area's lower economic status.

Ida McMillan, the reverend at Faith Tabernacle Church near the landfill, said with the significant black population close to the landfill, the area's persistent problems caused black residents to feel rejected by the community.

"In the black community, we felt we were being overlooked," McMillan said. "Being a low-rate place to live, it was maybe like a project area because not only were we a black community, we also had bad sewage and water."

Similar complaints of water contamination have also come from residents around the quarry.

The quarry expansion is a project on N.C. 54 and Bethel-Hickory Grove Church Road, which is being drilled by the American Stone Company.

The drilling is not expected to be completed until 2030, when American Stone will turn the quarry over to the Orange Water and Sewer Authority.

OWASA will transform the quarry into a reservoir for local water needs.

Orange County officials say the area will be in dire need of additional water sources as it grows.

In addition to water contamination, residents also complain that the blasting away of rock at the quarry is causing both undesirable noise and damage to their homes. They claim that this is lowering the economic status of the area.

"The value of the land is going down," said Roy Belon, a homeowner near the quarry. "I don't know why anyone would want to come in and buy (the land)."

But administrators for both of these areas insist that the landfill and quarry are not the causes of these problems. They argue that both land uses are beneficial to the community.

"We contribute jobs, good jobs," said Paxton Badham, vice president and assistant secretary of the American Stone Company. "We've been a real benefit to the county."

The administrators also contend that these land uses are not contributing to a lower economic class in areas around the quarry and landfill. "If you look at the census, the income is considerably higher than you would think," Wilson said, although he could not cite statistics pinpointing incomes within the area.

Wilson also explained that the rapid residential growth in the area around the landfill is evidence that the landfill is not causing a poverty-stricken area.

"Over half of the houses have been built since the landfill was built," Wilson said. "If the landfill is so bad, why do people keep building houses around it?"

Housing development has also blossomed in the area around the quarry expansion project. Bethel Church and Hickory Grove roads contain new homes valued at several hundreds of thousands of dollars, Wilson said.

But on the northern side of the quarry are 34 Habitat for Humanity homes, which are houses provided for low-income families.

The Orange County Habitat for Humanity organization has built more than 90 homes in Orange County, and it expects to complete its 100th home in the spring.

But in the entire county, about one-third of the Habitat for Humanity homes for economically disadvantaged people are located near the quarry expansion project, Wilson said.

Wilson explained that the locations of of the quarry and the landfill were probably chosen because of the property values in that area. "If you are looking to buy property, you are not looking for property values that are the highest," he said.

Chapel Hill Town Council member Jim Ward said he thinks both the landfill and quarry areas contain residents of a lower economic status.

"I think there's a certain amount of disenfranchised people in the area," Ward said.

"I think land decisions are made without (the residents') full input, and that does contribute to their status."

The City Editor can be reached at citydesk@unc.edu.