The county is moving forward with its plans to sell or lease a 534-acre tract of land off Buddy Faust Road.
Two companies have started taking core samples of the property’s granite to evaluate the quality and quantity of the stone, and three more are preparing to do the same, county officials said.
The interest comes after the county contacted a geologist, who recommended reaching out to suppliers.
The first company drilled three 250-foot holes between June 22 and July 10. The second company began last week, pushing deeper to 300 feet. Director of Planning, Zoning and Compliance Jeff Sharp said the county requested sampling to be done by Labor Day, but it may take longer.
The county received its first serious offer for a 496-acre portion of the land from Grayton Materials, an aggregate granite supplier, in January. However, the company pulled its bid last month over “different expectations” regarding the county’s due diligence process.
Despite Grayton’s withdrawal, county officials remain optimistic about establishing an aggregate quarry. The companies investigating the site are aggregate companies, county officials said.
“I think the only thing on the table right now is for an aggregate quarry,” said Jay Paul, the chairman of the board of commissioners. “The finances behind the aggregate would be more rewarding than a dimension stone.”
While dimension stone, which is used for things like sculptures or tiles, has a higher price per ton, aggregate — crushed stone used for infrastructure — often has higher production rates.
“(An) aggregate quarry is just a larger scale, larger investment, and hopefully, with larger rewards,” Paul said.
Any companies taking core samples must cover the costs of equipment and labor, and are liable for any damages caused during the process. The county considered pursuing independent sampling to determine a baseline value for the land, but deemed it too expensive.
Will Brown, the chairman of the Economic Development Authority (EDA) and District 4 Commissioner, estimated it would cost $286,000 for the county to conduct its own study.
“At this time, we don’t want to put that much money into evaluating (the land) when companies are so eager to do it themselves,” he said.
While the companies continue testing, county officials plan to develop a formal Request for Proposal (RFP).
The document will outline the county’s target price, specific requirements for buyers, such as designated buffer zones and site entrances placed strictly on Highway 78, and invite qualified contractors to submit bids.
“The intention is they do their due diligence, we tell them everything that we need in this RFP, (and) those two things together will determine who’s going to put offers on the table for us to review,” Brown said.
However, the deal is still in its early stages, and several details remain unresolved. Notably, an intergovernmental agreement between the board of commissioners and the EDA, allowing the EDA to market and sell the land, has not been signed by Paul.
While it was approved by the board 4-1 at its June 1 meeting, Paul said the drafted document contained several errors and wouldn’t be signed until they were corrected.
As of July 10, those amendments have not been made.
The board and EDA also remain undecided on if they will continue leasing 60 acres of the property for farmland, which Paul estimated the county began doing in 2011.
It is leased to Sam Nash, who has a corn crop on the property.
While companies are liable for any damages to the crop, the lease expires every three years, and Paul said the county might decide against renewal in favor of new development.
“I think at this point, anything is a possibility,” he said. “It’s just a lot of details to be analyzed and questions to be answered.”