A train passes Tuesday in early March off Interstate 84 near Perry, the site of a proposed 250-acre quarry that would ship 2,000 tons of material per day. The Union County Planning Commission voted against the proposal March 22, and the property owner withdrew the application ahead of the county board of commissionersâ vote Wednesday, April 6. Alex Wittwer/The Observer
UNION COUNTY â James Smejkal of Banks withdrew his application for a rock quarry off Robbs Hill Road before Union County commissioners could vote on Wednesday morning, April 7.
The Union County Planning Commission on March 22 voted to recommend the county commissioners reject Smejkalâs application, citing the staff report that found numerous deficiencies in the 400-plus pages of the document. The county board had scheduled a public hearing to consider the application for the rock quarry about a mile from Perry. The quarry would have been at least 250 acres.
LA GRANDE â James Smejkal of Banks has withdrawn his application for a rock quarry off Robbs Hill Road.
The Union County Board of Commissioners had scheduled a public hearing Wednesday morning, April 7, to consider the application for the rock quarry about a mile from Perry. The quarry would have been at least 250 acres.
The Union County Planning Commission on March 22 voted to recommend the county commissioners reject Smejkalâs application, citing the staff report that found numerous deficiencies in the 400-plus pages of the document.
Bill Kloos, legal counsel representing Smejkal, formally withdrew the application, according to information from Union County.
UNION COUNTY â The Union County Planning Commission held off Monday night, March 8, on saying yea or nay to the proposal to create a rock quarry at the bottom of Robbs Hill Road near Perry. Instead, the commission voted to delay the decision until its next regular meeting, March 22.
The move came after about two and a half hours of testimony during a phone-in only hearing to consider approving the plan for the 250-plus acre quarry on the property of James Smejkal of Banks.
Curtis Shuck of Shelby, Montana, attorney for the quarry applicants, represented the project along with Smejkalâs son, Bob Smejkal of Eugene. Shuck said putting together the 400-page application âhas been a journey of discoveryâ that has made the project stronger.
UNION COUNTY â Steve West has a goal to own the Ponderosa Ranch in the Mount Emily area overlooking the Grande Ronde Valley.
But to accomplish that, he said, he needs to get the OK from the Union County Planning Commission for a rock quarry with railroad access at the bottom of Robbâs Hill Road near Perry and about a couple of miles from La Grande.
Plenty of locals, however, donât want the quarry, fearing it will produce numerous negative effects, from noise and dust pollution to harming the nearby Grande Ronde River. West, who produces the TV series Steveâs Outdoor Adventures, said he has been working diligently the past two years to ensure that is not going to happen if the quarry becomes reality.