The zoning change of the 114 acre tract off of Roan Road from Residential to Heavy Industrial, though approved by the zoning board, has not yet been passed by the town council. Taxpayers, there is still time to question this decision. To say that the Feldspar/Quartzco mining waste landfill project has no down side is to completely ignore the losses many families, and indeed the face of the town, will suffer. Neighbors near the project will have their quality of life and their property values destroyed by the constant trucking traffic, machinery racket, flying dust. This is not the peaceful and serene craft and festival-loving, homey Spruce Pine that invites tourists and home buyers to enjoy life in a small mountain town. Who will want to move here in the future, when they see the eyesore of a mining landfill this close to town? The wildlife on this acreage – bear, deer, towhees, woodpeckers, nuthatches, thrushes, doves, foxes – all the creatures who touch our lives with mountain magic will be driven off. It’s only supposed to be eight or ten years of usage? (While two huge 40 to 50 foot pits are filled with the overburden and processed materials from the mine.) That is a whole childhood. It is not “green” to destroy an environment and a habitat and then cover it up with soil and plantings, make a soccer field of it. That is a mere Band Aid on top of a raw wound. Mitchell County became an official NC Heritage County not long ago. Is this the heritage we really want to preserve within Spruce Pine limits? Sacrificing huge tracts of land to be filled with mining waste? Better we start thinking about a heritage museum, a wildlife sanctuary, walking and hiking paths, botanical gardens showing off our unique mosses, wildflowers, and plants. Those are the kind of projects that show pride in what we have, the joy of mountain life. The Feldspar mine has kept this area going for a long, long time, and has the deserved loyalty of its workers. It contributes generously to town projects. As civic leaders, surely they must see the value of relocating this waste landfill to a more remote location in order to protect the very town they support. The approval of the zoning board for the proposed feldspar mine waste landfill project was step one in the process. Now the town council must vote the change through. Monday, February 13th will be the opportunity for people who oppose the zoning change to let their voices be heard in Town hall at 5:30 that evening. In the meantime, Spruce Pine Library has provided their common room on Tuesday night, February 7th, from 6-8 PM as a space for concerned citizens to informally meet and share their opinions.