Neighbors upset with the Highland Ridge Farm quarrying operation will bring their complaints to the Tiverton Zoning Board this Thursday at Tiverton High School.

The board is expected to hold a public hearing at 7 p.m. as the town continues to respond to what it deems an illegal quarrying operation and a legal tug-of-war with the quarry's owner.

Among those expected to speak against the operation is attorney David Rickerby, who recently prepared an exhaustive 288-page report on the matter.

When the Boston attorney moved to April Lane last summer, he relished the idea of working from home in a tranquil neighborhood that offered a welcome respite from city life. But within months of settling in, he said his peace and quiet was shattered by the sounds of pile drivers, incessant hammering and plumes of what he believes may be silica dust coming from the operation at 536 Highland Road Rear.

Rickerby, who did extensive research on the area before purchasing his property, referred to the quarry as “an unregulated nightmare” and a “direct risk to public health every day it is allowed to operate."

He and his neighbors allege that Thomas Chace, the operator of Highland Ridge Farm, LLC (HRF), continues to violate zoning laws and a series of cease-and-desist orders issued by the town several months ago.

In a zoning board appeal hearing earlier this month, HRF’s attorney, Joshua Parks, told zoning officials that quarrying operations have taken place on the site for many decades and are therefore grandfathered. Parks also argued that neither the town’s building official nor the zoning board are authorized to regulate quarry operations, and he referenced previous court cases that he said justified this argument.

Rickerby refutes these claims in portions of the 288-page document he recently presented to the zoning board. His report, which he intends to discuss at Thursday’s hearing, includes aerial photos of the property dating back to 1939 as well as detailed references to Real Estate transfers that have occurred through the years.

The statement also includes photos of a sound meter Rickerby keeps in his home office to record decibel levels of sounds emanating from the quarry.

“I have now had to cancel entire days of work on days when Mr. Chace runs the gravel crusher all day long,” he wrote.

Included also is a multi-page section titled “A brief note about the law” that highlights various court cases which Rickerby believes justify his contention that Parks “badly misconstrues the law” in his defense of the quarry.   

Rickerby contends in his statement that the case law is clear and the zoning board is empowered to interpret the town’s zoning ordinances.

“Nobody deserves to be treated the way Mr. Chace is treating his neighbors,” Rickerby wrote. “It isn’t legal, it isn’t moral, and it isn’t right.”