HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-20-1957 City Council minutesLIARATOGA CITY C3UNCIL
TIMv: 7:45 P. N., June 20, 1957
PLACE: 'Fireman's mall, Oak Street, `-�nratoga, California.
TYPE: Special Meeting re Appeal on iodoni Use hermit
I I10LL CALL
Present: Brazil, Jepson, Rosasco, 1- 1illiams
Absent: Langwill
Mayor Brazil opened the hearing by stating that the Council would
continue to hear arguments supporting the property right in the
affected area.
The Clerk read an affidavit of Willis Rodoni dated 6/13/57 and
also an affidavit of Otto E. Meyer, Vice President of caul Masson
Inc., dated June 12, 1957•
,Attorney Wade rover objected as to the above being: improper.
Boris Stanley, Attorney for the proponents, introduced documentary
evidence to which the opposing; attorneys objected.
`rhe mayor asked. Mr. Hall to hold, objections until 11r. = tenlfy had
introduced his evidence.
'.rte evidence, as introduced, is as follows:
Exhibit A - better from :dean x Borgne dated 7/23/54
Lxhibit 3 - Letter from Pillsbury, t.;adison & rlutro dated 7/26/54
t-xhibit C - Statement from the Chief Inspector of the . -�anta
Clara County Engineering Dept. dated 5131156
exhibit D - Statement of Kenneth Cushman with no date
.exhibit E - Statement of Abbott Hanks dated 6/22/54 covering a
geological report which Mr. Stanley asked. that the
Clerk not retain as it is the only copy available
and therefore was removed from the file.
- :xhibit - A map of the entire area, being a zoning map, which
Mr. 4tanley asked to withdraw after examination by
the Council insomuch as it was the only copy he
possessed.
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Exhibit G - Section 12 of the County Zoning r.agulations.
At this point, - _ttorney atanl -y- called as a critn�ss Willis Rodoni. At
the beginning of the testimony, there were many obj4ctions by Attorneys
Hall and Hover with rebuttals by ;Manley. Mayor Brazil reiterated that
the duties of theCouncil and the responsibilities were to give a full and
fair he- -ring to all and this v ould be rigidly followed.
Attorney Stanley continued to question Mr.rodoni about the
typography of the area, veg= tenon, etc. Mr. Bodoni also brought out
that the Stet? D.- p,:rtment of Industrial Relations, 960 Market Street,
oan Fri }ncisco 3, California, had had repres- WI-3,tives in the area on
sev:�ral occasions to test the amount of dust in the air and they had made
no comDlaints.
Attorney Stanley -uestioned Mr. Bodoni regarding traffic signs,
the pres?ncs of dynamiting, adequate dust control, the number of people
In the area of the quarry, operation hours, ingress and egress routes,
as per the agreement of the i-'lanning Commission and the operation of a
crusher.
Next witness called by Mr. Stanley was a Mr. zrthur C. Kennedy,
estimator for A. J. Raisch Paving Company since 1951. He testified as
to the duality of the material taken out of the quarry and the need for
same.
Mr. Hall cross- auestioned Mr. Kennedy at length r�r.1rding the amount
of material used by the City of San Jose, the availability of material
and how much material was purchased from the Rodoni Quarry between
April 1956 and May, 1957 (the answer being 20,000 yards). Attorney Hall
also brou ,ght out that the gravel was hauled in trucks owned by the
-aisch Company and that the route was down Digs 3asin through the City
and most of the gravel was used on subdivisions on Sarltog,_A .venue in
the vicinity of the Dempsey Tract.
Attorney Hall, at the conclusion of the ruestioning, stated that
In his opinion, there was several other outfits awaiting the outcome of
this hearing before starting quarries of their own in the immediate area.
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The next witness called by Attorney Stanley was one Bruoe Kann,
a resident of San Jose and a salesman for Edward E. Bacon Company for
two years - dealers in construction siuipment. Mr. Kann was questioned
concerning the oiler tion of a crusher which he stated could be enclosed
In an aluminium structure with insullatin7 material hung between the
outside of the structure and the crusher to out down on the noise.
He stated that there were a number of different type crushers that could
be used but in a direct question as to whether this crusher would cause
the same amount of noise as was evident during the old operations; i.e.,
with grizzle bars, he was of the opinion that both operations would cause
about the same amount of noise.
It was brought out by Mr. Hall, in questioning Mr. Kann, that
it is probable that a crusher taking a fourteen to sixteen inch rock
would be used by .Bodoni and he admitted that there were larger rooks
than this bring quarried. He stated in a direct question as to the
disposal of these larger rocks that they would h -c-,ve to be cast aside and
could not go through the crasher.
In a direct answer to the Mayor as to the a_oproximate cost o" a
crusher the answer was 445,000.
A recess was called at 9150 P.M.
The next witness called by Mr.Stanley was Clarence Neale who et-ted
that he has been open ting a business on H17hway . #9 known as The Barn
in Sar tog" for a number'of years and that Willis Fodoni was a close personal
friend of his. He had been asked by Mr. Rodoni to clock mileages and
amours other. information. He stated that the distance from the Saratoga
sr.vml Company to the Saratoga ar -mmar School in two miles; from the
the quarry to the Catholic Church, 1.7 miles; from the quarry to the
County Pit .9 mile. He stated, further that the nearest subdivision
(Evans) to the quarry was 1.6 miles. He stated that his observations
indicated that them were no more than four homes within a mile of the
quarry and in his opinion, there were no more than thirteen people residing
in the same area.
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•
The next witness called by Mr. Stanley was Lmr,�tt T. Gatewood,
who stated th_.t he has begin a licensed realtor since 1950 in Los Gatos.
In questioning as to the effect of the quarry on property in its imm-di 'te
area, he did not feel that the ou rry would materially harm the pro;o-:�rty
inthe area and felt that the popularity of the area would over -ride
possible objections to the quarry. H'3 used the Greenwood subdivision
just beyond the Saratoga City Limits and the Wildwood Eele-hts uh ivision
as examoles of oronertins which havi some derog:- tort' f -.,atu r'',s but Wiich
h !.ve been selling c °_uite easily.
Mr. ,t--�nley stated that he had heard that a tent °1.tive ton had been
;ubmitt^d to the City of Saratoga for a subdivision which was within a
v try short aistarace of the quarry and that it was located on the old
3ois eranc orop rty.
Firs. ^ller, of fierce Road, asked Ei'^ . Gatewood whether or not, in
his opinion, a ouarry in the Glen Una Area would have any ef:ect on that
!;r2a. Mr. Gatewood seated that it v :oul^ be impossible to have a qu,irry
in thnt area since it is zoned RE9.B4 wher -3s the o.u•-.rry in question is
in an are- zoned A2 : B4.
Mr. Hall and IVir. Hover ouestioned 11r. G.-�tewood �zt length and ?licited
the information that In Mr. G tewood's opinion, the pror)erty in the area
vlas selling for -:,2500 - ,':3500 per acre. He could snake no estim. to of the
value of the nrooerty if the ouarry was not over °.time.
Mr. Stanley at this time indicated th -t he wished to testify hims ^lf
,,end medicated th,,t from his notes that the assessed valuation for t?!.e
Whalen property in 1954 was X6, 380. He was nreventod f-om proce-d in?
with figures for 1_'ter years by the objections of Or. hall and, IAr.. Hover,
however, the Kayor allowed him, to give the assessment numbers for 1955 -56
(150418) and for 1956-57 (232989)• Theso record number s, if checked at
th,7: assessors office would show the assessment records cortainlDg the
v�alu')tion of thgoo properties.
.:.t this point, Varshall Nall moved, for dismissal of the hermit.
..ayor :_'razil stated that it was not a court of l��w an,+ refused a dis'nis � -,al.
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Councilman Williams stated that th - people in the audience and the
I
Cr. Hall asked If he cOulI ' call one witness before the h arirg was
al�ourr,id an,-j gr rated Permission. This was Mrs. Robert Keller of
13745 Pierce Road who stoat that she had lived at that address for 2.4
yon.--,rs and the addreqs was 112 mile from the Mt. Eden Road.
She stated that the truck traffic on Pjapoo Road was incessant
w"Ich the use permit had no jur"o-d'etion as far as the expelling of du t,
etc..
Al't this POInto the CI'Ay Attornoy Indicated that the indication of
Attorney stari.,,y rebutted indicating th,"t If the quarry Operatlors
were to follow UP to the letter the Use ""nrirdt conditions -at the prasent
tire, Such "s T-,)Ut In a costly cr�.isl-,,er Qnrj than fini thhit thirty days from
now the Use Permit was
• be wlthlrawn by the Council, It would caul
a tremendous finUnclal hardship. He Irdicated that they were willing to
m9 et the conditions Just as soon as th air was cle%r*d.
Mrs. Keller stated thet the douncll should consider how the Use Permit
Is to be Policed In the future.
Mayor 3razil moved for IdJournment and suggested thit the hearinq� be
continued at an adjourned meetinir,, on T'uesdayj June 25, 1957 fat 7:30
Ctirried unantmously.
Present' 30 plus 1 press