Chronology

Events and Developments

1991: The federal Bureau of Land Management accepts a bid from Southdown Inc. of Houston, the parent company of Transit Mixed Concrete to dig 83 million tons of sand and gravel from the Soledad Canyon hillside, south of the Antelope Valley Freeway between Agua Dulce Canyon and Soledad Canyon roads. A 10-year review process begins.

December 1999: The Los Angeles County Regional Planning Commission rejects the mine, declining to issue Azusa-based TMC mining permits. TMC appeals the decision to the Board of Supervisors. Because the federal government controls the mineral rights to the land, county officials have limited jurisdiction over the project.

August 2000: The BLM approves TMC's plan to mine 73 million tons. Local elected officials, the school districts and the water agencies appeal the decision, saying the mine would destroy the Santa Clarita Valley's environment and degrade residents' quality of life.

September 2000: Southdown and TMC are purchased by Cemex Inc., Mexico's largest cement producing company.

October 2000: City officials launch an all-out effort to stop the mine with a rally of 2,000 residents. Attorneys and consultants are hired to develop arguments against the mine.

January 2001: The Board of Supervisors delays action on the mine for 90 days, instructing TMC representatives to meet with city officials and negotiate a settlement to the dispute over the mine after 500 residents pack the meeting and voice their opposition. City officials argued that the 56.1 million tons of sand and gravel that TMC plans to mine means the operation would be far too large.

February 2001: A series of meetings begins between TMC and a team of city and county officials to discuss concerns about the mine. TMC offers to reduce the overall size of the mine by 11 percent, an offer rejected by the city because it does not reduce the crucial 56.1 million tons of aggregate to be sold. The city requests that the mine be reduced by 90 percent.

March 2001: Negotiations break down, as TMC ends the talks when the city declines to agree that TMC has an unalterable contract with the federal government to mine 56.1 million tons of aggregate.

April 2001: The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors said "No" Tuesday afternoon to Transit Mixed Concrete Co.’s plan to mine 56.1 million tons of sand and gravel in Soledad Canyon over 20 years.

After a 4-hour marathon session, the supervisors voted 4-0, with First District Supervisor Gloria Molina out ill, to deny the project as proposed. They directed county planning staff to explore mitigation measures proposed by the city of Santa Clarita and the Acton and Aqua Dulce Town Councils.

The supervisors gave the planning staff 60 days to explore and analyze the mitigation measures. Unlike a normal denial, Transit Mixed can return to the planning department within that time frame with a project that includes most, if not all, of the mitigation measures proposed by the city.

July 2001: The federal government agreed to study the impacts of the TMC mine on the rare southwestern arroyo toad along the banks of the Santa Clara River. Deputy City Manager Rick Putnam said the BLM would make a new analysis of the overall environmental impact of the mine - not just the mine's effect on the endangered toad.

October 25, 2001: An opinion issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service found that several endangered species in the area will not be affected by Transit Mixed Concrete's proposed 56.1-million-ton gravel pit.

November 27, 2001: At a public hearing postponed from June 27 to hear reports on mitigation measures proposed by the City of Santa Clarita and the Acton and Agua Dulce Town Councils the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors again postponed the decision, citing incomplete information in the project's EIR. The Board directed TMC to provide additional analysis on traffic mitigation of Soledad Canyon Road and to confirm that proper traffic studies were completed for impact areas of the 14 Freeway.

January 23, 2002: Cemex files suit against the County in order to halt further delays in opening the mine, Santa Clarita files suit against the US government in order to protect endangered species.

February 27, 2002: The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors votes 5 - 0 against the mine, citing inadequate traffic studies. TMC refused earlier this month to complete the additional traffic analysis requested by the county.