An Auke Bay quarry can now work Saturdays again, under a renewed permit

The Auke Bay quarry at Stabler Point can operate on Saturdays again, under a renewed permit the Juneau Planning Commission approved in late July. The new Saturday hours run 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., excluding state holidays — but the noisiest work stays limited: no blasting, drilling or crushing on Saturdays, and blasting hours during the week are unchanged.

The Saturday request came not from the city, which filed the renewal, but from the quarry's sole operator, James Sidney. He noted that Saturday work had been dropped in 2011, and argued that being squeezed into a 40-hour week doesn't fit Juneau — "we are not a 40-hour community" — and that every other quarry in town runs seven days a week.

The idea drew mixed input from city staff. The city's material source manager said Saturday work could help city projects, since contractors often work six-day weeks. The lands and resources manager raised concerns about traffic and staffing. The permit's conditions are meant to balance the supply of construction material against the noise for surrounding neighbors.

The quarry was first permitted in 1996 and opened in 2001, and has run on a series of renewals and temporary extensions since. The new permit runs through 2036. Along with the Saturday hours, it extends weekday hours slightly, raises the maximum blast size, and allows emergency extensions.