Decision on Ledyard quarry plan tabled to next week

Lee Howard

Ledyard — The Planning and Zoning Commission tabled a vote Thursday on a proposed 40-acre quarry off Route 12 in Gales Ferry that residents have said would ruin their health, disturb their neighborhoods and reduce the value of their homes.

The commission is next scheduled to meet to discuss and possibly vote on the application Thursday, Feb. 20 at 6 p.m. in the Town Hall Annex.

Commission members had expressed skepticism during a series of meetings over the past two months about the quarry application submitted by Gales Ferry Intermodal LLC, a division of Cashman Dredging & Marine Contracting Co. of Quincy, Mass., for a site that once housed a Dow Chemical plant. The company is seeking a special permit that would allow it to blast away large portions of Mount Decatur, where a War of 1812 fort once stood and which GFI promised to protect and help place on the National Register of Historic Places.

Commissioners agreed early during Thursday's meeting that Gales Gerry Intermodal had not proved that dust from the quarry operation could be kept within the the GFI property boundary, and therefore the application would not adhere to town regulations.

"We're not satisfied because of fugitive dust," Chairman Marty Wood said. "Commissioners felt that there will be some phantom dust that will get away."

"All they can do is to try to minimize dust," added Commissioner James Harwood. "It's going to impact adjacent properties as well as properties across the street."

Concerning vibrations from blasting during the quarrying process, Harwood said the initial blasts 150 feet up on the hill might not be an issue, but later blasting at ground level likely would create more severe impacts.

Commissioner Howard Craig said he was concerned that vibrations would create a nuisance and that they would be transmitted beyond the boundaries of the property, both of which would violate town regulations.

Planning Director Liz Burdick offered a long explanation of how GFI planned to handle the problem of silica dust. Toward the end of her presentation, a member of the audience said "People die," to which Burdick complained that she couldn't hear because of the interruption. Wood asked audience members not to speak out, and the conversation continued.

"When you blast silica you get a lot of little tiny pieces," Harwood said. "If you breathe this in, they're very sharp ... it's not like breathing normal dust."

One of the major controversies the commission had to decide Thursday was whether the quarry application fit the definition of "excavation major" under the town's zoning regulations. Burdick, who was brought on in the middle of the quarry controversy after Mayor Fred Allyn III fired previous planner Juliet Hodge, offered her opinion that the application did fit within the definition, but commission members were initially skeptical. After much back and forth with Burdick, however, the commission decided that it wouldn't cite this as a reason for denial.

Another major issue brought up at previous hearings was concern over property values. Commission members previously had discussed expert testimony and decided that home values might not lose value after the quarry project is completed in about 10 years, but they were sure people who needed to sell during the blasting and rock-hauling process would almost assuredly be facing lower home values.

Commissioners Beth Ribe and Matt Miello previously said they worried about blasting and the likelihood of litigation from homeowners if damage occurred. Ribe was particularly concerned with the intensity and duration of the proposed quarry operation, and Miello said property values most assuredly would be affected.

In other business, the P&Z heard a brief presentation about a proposed 12-unit elderly housing development in the back of the former Ledyard Center School at 740 Col. Ledyard Highway. The age-restricted development would be part of a larger development that would be presented later. A full presentation on the project is expected next month.

Tariff fears tied to biggest construction cost jump in 2 years

Sebastian Obando

Construction input prices jumped 1.4% in January, marking the largest monthly increase in two years, according to an analysis by Associated Builders and Contractors.

Energy costs drove much of that increase, with crude petroleum, natural gas and unprocessed energy all rising.

However, the price jump also stems from a rush to purchase materials ahead of potential tariffs, said Anirban Basu, ABC chief economist. The cost of inputs to construction now sits 40.5% higher than February 2020, according to the report.

Dive Insight:

The latest construction input price surge underscores concerns among contractors about material costs, particularly in light of new steel and aluminum tariffs, according to Associated General Contractors of America.

Even before Trump’s inauguration, the high probability of tariffs already appeared to have been driving price increases, said Ken Simonson, AGC chief economist.

The sharp increase in prices signals a shift after a year of relative stability for contractors. That’s largely due to three factors, said Basu.

“First, energy prices rose sharply. Second, producers often raise their prices at the start of the year,” said Basu. “And third, many purchasers rushed to buy inputs before potential tariffs could go into effect, and that surge in demand pushed prices higher.”

Of these factors, tariffs will likely have the most lasting impact, said Basu.

“A strong majority of contractors expect their sales to increase over the next six months,” said Basu. “The combination of increased demand for construction inputs and ongoing supply chain confusion suggest input price escalation could accelerate through the first half of 2025.”

Construction backlog posts gains to kick off the year

Sebastian Obando

Construction backlog increased to 8.4 months in January, reversing December’s slight decline, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors survey conducted from Jan. 21 to Feb. 3. The metric tracks the volume of work in builders’ pipelines.

The Western region posted the largest backlog growth, both on a monthly and year-over-year basis, while the South maintained the longest backlog at 9.5 months, despite seeing the steepest decline over the past year.

Contractor confidence remained strong, with sales and profit margin expectations rising, though staffing level expectations fell, according to ABC.

Dive Insight:

The backlog increase in January reflects continued stability in construction activity as contractors enter 2025, said Anirban Basu, ABC chief economist, in the release. 

“While backlog has remained within a narrow range over the past year, contractors broadly expect construction activity to pick up over the next six months,” said Basu. “Contractor confidence regarding sales has improved significantly over the past year, with much of that improvement occurring since November’s election.”

 

Though confidence in sales and profit margins continues to stay strong, the dip in staffing expectations comes after a sharp decline in job openings in late 2024. Open construction jobs fell by 55,000 to 217,000 in December compared to November, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

Basu noted, however, that all three readings remain above ABC’s threshold of 50, indicating expectations for growth over the next six months. That means hiring demand could bounce back sooner rather than later.

“The fact that staffing level expectations remain elevated suggests that job openings, which fell sharply during the final months of 2024, should rebound during the first half of 2025,” said Basu.