COUNTYWIDE : Quarry Owner Plans to Sue Over Closure
A quarry owner said Thursday he will not appeal a judge’s order closing his operation after nearby landowners complained it posed a hazard.
Terry Smith, owner of Somis Sand and Rock Co., said he will pursue a separate lawsuit seeking $7 million in damages against Ventura County officials who first ordered the quarry closed last November.
Trucks driving to and from the quarry created “a tremendously and intolerably unsafe condition,” according to an opinion by retired Court of Appeal Justice Edwin Beach, which was issued Wednesday.
“There was substantial and clear evidence . . . that many were operated hazardously, that many engaged in tailgating, convoying, passing over double lines, raising dust and permitting particles to fly off loads, speeding, impeding access from adjacent private drives and other streets and especially creating a hazardous condition on the turn at Highway 118,” Beach wrote.
Since 1987, Somis Rock and Sand had increased traffic from 40 to more than 200 trips a day, said Frank Sieh, Ventura County counsel. Beach’s ruling cited testimony given during hearings before the Ventura County Board of Supervisors by residents of Balcom Canyon and Bradley Roads, which were major routes for Somis Sand and Rock Co. trucks.
Smith said Thursday that he has lost $20,000 worth of business a day since closing the pit at 8649 Bixby Road.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
