A large community of over 100 people along with environmental activists are urging the Illinois state government to hold off granting a building permit for a proposed cement manufacturing plant at 117th Street and Torrence Avenue. Many of the people wore face masks while testifying before an Illinois Environmental Protection Agency panel held at Olive-Harvey College, 10001 S. Woodlawn Ave., to symbolize what they believe will be further damage to the air quality in neighborhoods such as the East Side and South Deering. Illinois EPA officials already have granted a preliminary determination that the potential for nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide emissions is minimal enough that it would fall within federal and state environmental guidelines. But work on the construction project cannot begin until the EPA issues a building permit.