In a 3 to 2 voteTuesday Lane County Commissioners effectively put a stop to a quarry project on TV Butte near Oakridge.
Local residents, including the mayors of Oakridge and neighboring Westfir, have objected to the quarry proposal, citing concerns over silica dust, and impacts to groundwater and recreation.
Board Chair Joe Berney said their vote was on whether reopen the record to allow Crown Properties, the applicant, more time to address potential harm to big game habitat.
“The one concern the commissioners hung their hat on in voting to deny moving forward on the quarry was that the applicant did not provide sufficient evidence that big game habitat would not be destroyed or tampered with,” Berney said.
Commissioners Pat Farr and Jay Bozievich were in the minority. They argued to reopen the record to allow Crown to submit a mitigation plan. Berney says they’ll revisit the quarry issue again in the fall for a final vote.
Copyright 2021 KLCC.
