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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFEBRUARY 11,1994 I 1 CITY COUNCIL PROCEEDINGS ARE TAPE RECORDED AND ON FILE IN THE OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK TOUR OF RODEFFER QUARRY SITE (12321 Lower Azusa Rd.) M I NUT E S CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ARCADIA ADJOURNED REGULAR MEETING (TOUR OF RODEFFER QUARRY SITE) FEBRUARY II, 1994 The City Council met in an Adjourned Regular Meeting at 8:30 a.m. on Friday, February 11, 1994, at the office of the City Manager to leave together for a tour of the Rodeffer Quarry Site at 12321 Lower Azusa Road, Arcadia. PRESENT: ABSENT: Councilmembers Fasching, Lojeski, Margett, and Ciraulo Councilmember Harbicht OTHERS PRESENT: Acting City Manager William Kelly, City Attorney Michael Miller, City Clerk June Alford, Assistant to the City Manager Alex McIntyre, Assistant Community Development Director-Planning Donna Butler, City Counci'l Candidate Johanna Hofer The City Council, City Clerk and staff arrived at the Rodeffer Quarry at approximately 8:45 a.m. The purpose of visiting this site to allow Council to view the quarry pit and ask questions of staff. Following is a summary of staff's responses to Council's questions: Staff reported that the Rodeffer quarry pit is currently zoned for heavy industrial use, however, after the pit is filled, anything constructed at the site would require a conditional use permit. Staff noted that it would take eight to twelve years to completely fill the pit. The mining of this quarry was on-going for almost thirty years. In 1990 the mining ceased when the water table level interfered with mining the site. The site this date held a large body of water which staff said could be as deep as twenty to thirty feet at the center of the pit and was actually at the level of the water table in the area; also the total depth of the pit from ground level at the edge of the slope to the bottom is a depth of 160 feet. Recent rains have washed out a horse trail at the north end of the site and caused earth slides in the pit area. In reply to Council's questions, Ms. Butler reported that the entire Rodeffer quarry site is 82 acres. The owners would like to fill the pit. Further, that state law requires that quarries be reclaimed. The owner of this quarry wants to fill the pit with inert material such as concrete, dirt and rocks, then develop the land in conformance with the zoning. A brief discussion ensued of the effect of recent rainfall and the rise of the water level. Ms. Butler noted that staff does not have a measurement of just how much the water has risen, however, the changes in the site in the past two years have been signifi- cant. In 1993 major erosion occurred and a lot of slippage on the north side of the pit. Aerial photographs taken in 1991 and again in 1993 reveal major changes in the site after 1991, In response to Council's question of the process which would be used to fill the pit according to the proposal, Ms, Butler stated that the trucks hauling the materials to the site would enter the area off of Lower Azusa Road and proceed to a weigh station, The load will be inspected in that area. Each truck load will have a manifest or ticket indicating where the material has come from and showing that it had been inspected for materials that may be decomposable. The load will be inspected a third time before it is dumped into the pit, No crushing of materials such as large pieces of concrete will take place at this site, which will help to reduce dust for this operation. Ms. Butler explained that -1- 2/11/94 there are two proposals for the filling of the site,. . the plan implemented will depend on how much water is in the pit. If the water level is up, filling will begin at the northeast section of the pit first, following construction of a road to that area. Originally, the plan was to fill from the south end, however, the slopes of the quarry will need to be stabilized at that area before filling can begin. Referring to the western side of the pit to which homes back up to, staff explained that eventually a road would be constructed along that side atop the slope and a berm built as a buffer along with the existing wall. The proposal suggests an overall height of 12 feet for the berm which may be landscaped. There is not enough room for the berm at this point in time because of erosion to the slopes, which will have to be stabilized and filled, Staff reported that the materials brought to the site for the I fill would not be reprocessed for reuse, the entire operation is strictly for filling the quarry pit. Staff has recommended that an engineer be on-site to test all soils before any dumping into the pit occurs. If a load is found to contain decomposable material it will be placed in a special pile which will be taken off the site to another type of landfill. This includes any type of hazardous material within a load. In reference to potential uses of the site such as recreational use, Ms. Butler explained that long-range use of the land is not addressed in the Environmental Impact Report (EIR); technically, by state law, the Surface Mining and Reclamation Act requires that there be some form of reclamation, which means the area must be brought back to a useful state. A brief discussion occurred of local residents' obj ections to the filling of the quarry pit. The City Attorney advised that should the project be contested, it would possibly be on the basis of the EIR process. This issue may be discussed with Council in a closed session, if needed. Referring back to the fill operation, Ms. Butler advised that the Rodeffer Company has a contract with Roadway Construction Company, which performs construction work on freeways. Roadway Construction feels confident that they will have enough material to fill this site over the long term, eight to twelve years. The recent earthquake was noted, and the great deal of damage which occurred to freeways and overpasses. . . this type of work is within Roadway's scope of construction. "" Ms. Butler briefly explained the erosion process in this pit which has taken place over the years in many areas of the slopes. An earthquake in the area could be a problem, however, after the Whittier earthquake staff did not observe any significant change in the slopes. On the return trip to City Hall, staff pointed out nearby land 1 also owned by Mr, Rodeffer which is not mined or built upon. Also, in response to Council's question, the City of Arcadia annexed this area to the City in the 1950's.. . however , mining did not begin until eight years later. ADJOURNMENT At 10:30 a.m. the meeting (Rodeffer tour) ADJOURNED to 7:00 p.m., February 15, 1994, in the Conference Room of the Council Chambers for an Adjourned Regular Meeting to conduct the business of the Council and any Closed Session necessary to discuss personnel, litigation matters or evaluation of properties. f}?- .,J ~f~< J D. Alford, y Cler~ ATTEST: -2- 2/11/94