Yesterday the Land Use Board of Appeals upheld a recent victory that Crag secured on behalf of Rogue Advocates, upholding a Jackson County Hearings Officer’s decision that denies land use approval for an asphalt batch plant operation that has been illegally operating in a residential area near Talent, Oregon for over 14 years, despite having never secured land use approval or permits.
The landowner appealed the Hearings Officer’s decision to the Land Use Board of Appeals. On behalf of Rogue Advocates, Crag intervened in that action to defend the County hearings officer’s decision and the victory Rogue Advocates had secured in challenging the application before Jackson County. LUBA affirmed the County’s decision and upheld the finding that the asphalt plant presents adverse impacts to the surrounding community because it presents a risk of fire and explosion in a residential community.
Crag client, Rogue Advocates, and local residents have spent over four years fighting to stop the operation of the Mountain View Paving asphalt batch plant in a residential zone and within the floodway of Bear Creek, a tributary to the Rogue River.
This week Crag attorney Maura Fahey will argue before a federal court in Medford that because the asphalt plant lacks required land use approval, it is in violation of the Clean Air Act and thus should be required to stop all of its illegal activities immediately.
This asphalt batch plant has been illegally operating in a residential area without permits for over 14 years.