Georgetown neighborhood sues nearby limestone quarries for ‘dust and noise’

GEORGETOWN, Texas – A Georgetown neighborhood is taking a limestone quarry to court. 

It comes after years of what they call negligence, nuisance, and property damage.

Concerns about quarries

What they’re saying:

John Bivona is one of the plaintiffs. He’s lived in the countryside of northwest Georgetown for almost nine years now.

“When we moved to this location, this was a pasture, it had horses running on it,” said Bivona. “Okay, look at it now.”

He points to three limestone quarries, one of which comes up next to his property line.

“When you talk about being a good neighbor, they’re anything but a good neighbor,” said Bivona.

About four years ago, he said he began having issues with dust and noise, pointing to heavy machinery on the other side of his fence.

“We’ve had concerns about dust and noise and operating seven days a week, it fell on deaf ears,” said Bivona.

He’s suing two of the companies who own the quarries with the help of his son, Drew Bivona, who is an attorney out of Houston.

“This lawsuit is not about being anti-limestone mines,” said Drew Bivona. “We want everybody to have a business, whether it’s a family business or a large business, and there are a lot of good operators that are doing the right thing.”

The lawsuit calls out Espinoza Stone and JB Stone.

FOX 7 attempted to reach both companies but only heard back from Espinoza Stone, which declined to comment because of the open case.

“The parties in this lawsuit, the defendants have kind of taken a blind eye or a cold shoulder to the community, not listening to complaints, not doing anything to address their complaints, not trying to make their operations as minimally impactful in the community as possible,” said Drew Bivona.

The case has the attention of statewide organizations like the Coalition for Responsible Aggregate Mining.

“I see it all over Texas, you know, whether it’s in Central Texas or in Houston, wherever you have aggregate production, you’re going to have dust,” said Michael Spano, co-founder of the Coalition for Responsible Aggregate Mining.

Spano is hoping it will have an impact far greater than Williamson County.

WilCo residents speak on quarry concerns

A new survey in Williamson County highlights the frustrations of many residents living near rock quarries. Almost all respondents said it has had some negative impact on their lives.

“We’re hoping that some legal precedents will be set, like whatever they’re asking for will be translatable to other quarries,” said Spano.

While John knows he likely won’t be able to shut them down, he’s hoping to get some of the peace and quiet back he had when he moved in nine years ago.

“They’ve made our life difficult, we’re going to make their life more difficult,” said Bovino. “We’re fighting back.” 

The trial begins on August 4.

Texas Aggregates and Concrete Association responds

The Texas Aggregates and Concrete Association said it does not represent the companies in this specific lawsuit, Espinoza Stone and JB Stone, or ongoing lawsuits. But, chairman Rich Szecsy, PhD, PE, Big Town Concrete, did send the following statement:

“We cannot underestimate the importance of the Texas construction materials industry in to provide the products that our state demands and needs for its unprecedented growth.

In fact, in just 20 years, Texas will grow by nearly 7 million people – from 31.8 million in 2025 to more than 38.6 million in 2045. To meet that demand, we will need to essentially build the equivalent of Texas’ five largest cities – Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, Austin and Fort Worth – all over again. That kind of growth simply isn’t possible without the strength and dedication of our industry.”