Resident appeals permit approval for Modesto scrap metal recycler

Stanislaus County supervisors will decide the fate of a scrap metal recycling business in south Modesto.

Rebecca Harrington, who has led neighborhood opposition to the business, said she appealed the May 7 county Planning Commission decision that approved a use permit for Central Valley Recycling, at 524 S. Ninth.

Harrington said she paid a $622 appeal fee, and has invited supervisors for a tour of the neighborhood. As of Friday, no one had accepted the invitation, she said. Officials have not set the date and time for the hearing before the Board of Supervisors.

“I filed the appeal because our community deserves something better than this,” Harrington said. “We deserve to live in peace as we did before the car recycling.”

Central Valley stirred complaints with the growth of its scrap-metal operation after a county business license was issued in 2009. The recycler has used a mechanical claw to tear apart and stack discarded motor vehicles at the two-acre center.

The county refused to renew the business license in 2012 when code enforcement officers confirmed neighbors’ complaints about noise and dust. Central Valley was facing a possible abatement order in September 2013, but supervisors allowed the business to apply for a permit to show it can alleviate the effects on neighbors.

County planners, on a 5-1 vote this month, found that Central Valley’s improvement plan met the requirements for the land-use permit. County staff members noted that two other recycling businesses operate in that area.

Don Francis, co-owner of Central Valley Recycling, said he has spent $120,000 dealing with the neighborhood complaints and the county’s permit requirements. He suggested that most nearby residents have no gripes about his business.

“She (Harrington) wants me to spend another $300,000 on improvements,” he said. “I have fixed the dust problems. I have fixed the noise.”

Central Valley sprays water to control dust. In addition, the car-crushing operation was moved toward the center of the 2-acre site so it is farther away from the homes east of Bystrum Road. The permit would limit car crushing to the hours of 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

Francis said a wall and landscaping planned along the property’s east side will cost $30,000 and a required stormwater system is estimated at $165,000.

Harrington argued that Central Valley is using a large amount of water on dust control in the middle of a drought. According to Francis, it would cost an additional $100,000 if he was required to pave the property.

“The business does not make that kind of money to do all this,” Francis said.

Francis said the business has about a dozen employees. The owners told the Planning Commission they have looked for another site, but the South Ninth Street area is the best location.

This story was originally published May 25, 2015 at 11:37 AM with the headline "Resident appeals permit approval for Modesto scrap metal recycler."