A Polk County retirement community is trying to keep out a rock crushing company of fear for its health.
People who live in the Lake Pointe Village community in Mulberry say the company’s projects will put out so much dust it will hurt the elderly people who live there.
For Calvin Freeland and his wife, Delores, it’s a major health concern.
“Anything that they add to the air that’s not normal there is going to affect people like myself, Calvin Freeland said. "I’m not the only one in this world that has COPD or emphysema."
Delores says the potential dust from the site would also hurt her because she only has one lung.
“This concerns me because what’s going into the air I’m going to be breathing, and that’s not going to help what I have left,” she said.
The couple is just one of several hundred people in the community who oppose JVS Contracting company opening up shop in their backyard.
The board of county commissioners voted in favor of the rock crushing company moving forward with permitting and crushing concrete.
At a commission meeting Tuesday, JVS owner John Simon said it’s a process that’s not nearly as dangerous as the residents think.
“In the construction business and in the recycling business, you want to keep the dust down 100 percent,” said Simon. “If it’s dusty, that just plugs your air filters on your equipment. If your air filters are plugged, it just consumes double the fuel and costs you more money. You don’t want your men working in this condition. You want to keep it safe.”
But the people in this community still aren’t convinced.
“We will be monitoring him for everything that he does, and we will also be reporting to the environment people if he violates the permits,” said David Downs, the Lake Pointe Village Association president.
This fight for the community may be far from over. County leaders didn’t want to comment on this story because they say there could be further legal action involved.