The Olathe City Council voted 7-0 on Tuesday, Oct. 6, to approve a 109-acre quarry expansion in south Olathe. Active mining will move within 700 feet of homes in the Oak Run neighborhood.

The vote came despite a petition with more than 440 signatures opposing the project, first reported by the Olathe Reporter. The expansion will allow Johnson County Aggregates (JCA) to mine and blast above and below ground on the new site, southeast of West 151st Street and Old 56 Highway.

Some council members said they felt "boxed in," according to the Olathe Reporter, because JCA was granted an unlimited permit in the 1980s. The company has operated the existing 435-acre quarry since 1985. The main site still holds more than 100 years of rock.

The approval included new dust management rules. According to KSHB 41, those requirements call for enclosing the quarry's rock crusher, daily sweeping on 159th Street, scaling back operations during windy or dry conditions and setting limits on blasting. An Olathe city spokesperson told KSHB the new permits would impose stricter requirements on the existing quarry for dust control, blasting, access, screening and monitoring.

Residents had pushed hard against the expansion. Angela Myers, a physician who lives in Lakestone Estates near the quarry, told KSHB 41 on Oct. 6 that shock waves from blasting damage foundations. "The dust is terrible now… People are breathing it in," Myers said. David Yu, also a physician in Lakestone Estates, raised concerns about airborne silica and other carcinogens.

Oak Run resident Korey Parker told KSHB the neighborhood consensus was clear: residents do not want surface mining at all.

On Monday, the mayor agreed to allow residents 15 minutes of public comment before Tuesday’s vote. The mayor granted residents 15 minutes to speak the day before the vote, KSHB reported.

The Olathe Planning Commission had recommended approval 6-2 on Sept. 14. Commissioners Megan Lynn and Tony Bergida voted against the proposal. Lynn said at that hearing that citizen health standards differ from industry standards and that she could not support something that could hurt residents.

The council's next meeting date and any appeal timeline for the quarry decision were not available as of publication.