Stanislaus County supervisors side with neighbors in dispute with metal recycler

Stanislaus County supervisors have decided not to allow a south Modesto business to crush and tear apart vehicles.

Central Valley Recycling may collect old appliances and metal at 524 S. Ninth St., but it cannot use a giant claw or other equipment to process scrap metal, supervisors decided at their meeting Tuesday.

The unanimous decision apparently settled a long-lasting dispute between the business and nearby residents, who said the car-crushing operation created noise, stirred up dust and rattled the windows of their homes.

Supervisor Jim DeMartini said the nuisance arose when Central Valley started crushing and cutting car bodies after a county business license was issued in 2009. He said the operation should be restricted to an industrial area.

Supervisor Bill O’Brien said, “I can’t in good conscience vote to expand what they do out there.”

The Board of Supervisors considered an appeal of a Planning Commission decision last month that approved a use permit for Central Valley. The planners, on a 5-1 vote, found the business had reduced the noise and planned other improvements to minimize the impact on neighbors living east of the 2-acre site. The staff also noted two other recyclers conduct business on South Ninth Street.

At Tuesday’s hearing, a neighbor, Julia Martinez, said she was concerned about noise and chemicals seeping into the ground at the facility. She said exhaust from the center aggravates her son’s asthma.

Rebecca Harrington, who appealed the planners’ decision, said the business could not be trusted to comply with permit conditions, based on its track record. An intern for California Rural Legal Assistance also opposed the permit in a letter, charging that low-income residents would “suffer a disproportionate burden to their health.”

The letter echoed previous complaints that the recycling business would not be allowed near an upscale neighborhood.

A consultant for Central Valley said the owners had made changes to reduce the impact and satisfied requirements for the permit. He said the restrictions tacked on by supervisors Tuesday are a “pretty significant hit to the business.”

Central Valley will be limited to 2,000 tons of metal per year. It has to pave the site and build a system to control storm runoff.

This story was originally published June 16, 2015 at 11:18 PM with the headline "Stanislaus County supervisors side with neighbors in dispute with metal recycler."