HILLSBOROUGH: Quarry invites neighbors, officials to tour site

By Gene Robbins, Managing Editor
   Owners of the Gibraltar Rock Quarry have invited Hillsborough and Montgomery municipal leaders and nearby property owners to visit their enterprise on Route 601 on Monday, June 4, at 3 p.m.
   Although the quarry has an application to cut down 20 acres of trees in order to install a solar array to provide power for the quarry, it’s only coincidental with the open house, said a company official.
   Gibraltar has been planning to greet the neighbors ever since buying the quarry from 3M in June 2009, said Sean Earlen, who runs the firm’s real estate department.
   The company has been cleaning up the site, he said, and wants neighbors and municipal leaders to understand what goes in the operation, Mr. Earlen said. The 750-acre site is in both townships.
   Owners John and Larry Silvi plan a short bus tour of the quarry and processing plant, followed by a short presentation.
   Because it’s highly likely that there will be questions about the solar array application, representatives of KDC Solar, the company that would lease the land, install the panels and sell the power back to the company, will be there, too, Mr. Earlen said.
   The solar panel application is scheduled for its second session before the Hillsborough Planning Board on Thursday, June 14.