Department of Planning & Development
Onno Husing
Planning and Development Director
ohusing@co.lincoln.or.us
(541) 265-4192
info@qwyp.com
541-968-6089
QUARRY......Where's Your PERMIT??!!
Eckman Creek Quarry operates without required local land use permits. PLEASE contact your county commissioners. Ask them to resolve this land use violation before our tax dollars are wasted on defending a lawsuit.
Quote from Onno Husing "The act of the expansion of the quarry -- during 1989 -- when it encompassed this second parcel, in effect, gave Lincoln Count the authority to regulate Eckman Creek Quarry. That authority, to regulate that quarry under a CU, has existed since 1989." WHY WON'T LCPD Do THEIR JOB?
What’s Going On!
Welcome to our complex confusing world of noise and land use laws. This website has information regarding Eckman Creek Quarry and the Lincoln County Planning Department. Please visit the entire website. New information added frequently. Our goal is… Read More
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EMAILS A MUST READ
“The act of the expansion of the quarry — during 1989 — when it encompassed this second parcel, in effect, gave Lincoln Count the authority to regulate Eckman Creek Quarry. That authority, to regulate that quarry under a… Read More
Learn MoreOUR STORY
We live near 2 rock quarries. One quarry, applied for and obtained required county permits. Conditional Use Permits. They have regulated days and hours of operations. They provide notices of blasting, before the event. The other quarry… Read More
Learn MoreUPDATES 2021 2022
Email from John O’Leary April 5, 2021
Please list the activities allowed. There are different answers to this question depending on the context. If you want a list of uses allowed under the T-C zoning, I would refer you to LCC 1.1375. However, I believe that the context here relates to the current use. The immediate answer to this question is that the property may continue to operate a quarry and in conformance with all relevant permits (DOGAMI, etc.) and applicable regulations.
Please list days and hours of operations allowed. There are no land use restrictions on days or hours of operation for the current use.
What can the quarry do now? They can continue to operate as they have historically operated.
A …..Drill? As long as the activity is consistent with the historical operation of the quarry this activity may continue.
B…..Blast? As long as the activity is consistent with the historical operation of the quarry this activity may continue.
C…..Crush rocks? As long as the activity is consistent with the historical operation of the quarry this activity may continue.
D…..Load trucks? As long as the activity is consistent with the historical operation of the quarry this activity may continue.
What days can they operate? There are no land use restrictions on days or hours of operation for the current use.
What hours can they operate? There are no land use restrictions on days or hours of operation for the current use.
What are the limits on production? Lincoln County Planning and Development has not placed any limits on production for the current use.
What is the daily limit on the number loaded trucks allowed on our County roads? Lincoln County Planning and Development has not placed any limits on vehicular traffic to or from the quarry’s location.
Is a hearing planned? Lincoln County has not scheduled any hearings regarding this property.
What is the status of the quarry today? – As of right now, the quarry is still considered a lawful use that existed prior to the adoption of the county’s land use code (answer to previous email question). Is this the official Lincoln County determination regarding our 2016 complaint? I’m not aware of your 2016 complaint, nor am I familiar with the substance of the complaint. My answer may or may not address your complaint. Regardless, the existing use is lawful and is allowed to continue.
Who made this determination? No land use determination has been made. The use as it exists today has demonstrably existed prior to the adoption of the Lincoln County Land Use code. Observation of an existing and continuous use of land does not constitute a land use decision, nor is it a determination made by staff.
Was the 1989 expansion considered in this determination? Again, no determination was made. The existing use was established prior to 1989.
Does Kauffman Crushing/Eckman Creek Quarry need a Conditional Use Permit to operate? No, but they may need a conditional use permit to expand their operations.
Have any applications for a permit been filed since October 2020? Not that I am aware of.
Are they still exempt from enforcement? – No (answer to previous email question).
What exactly is the County going to enforce? Lincoln County will investigate a complaint of a code violation and, if a determination of violation is made, will act in a manner that remedies the violation in a reasonable time-frame as the circumstances require.
Who should be contacted regarding a violation? It depends on the violation; however, Lincoln County’s current policy is to direct individuals who believe some type of code violation is occuring to the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department (non-emergency number: (541) 265-0777) to report a code violation. A code enforcement deputy will then contact you and take your report. That person will investigate the matter and coordinate with the appropriate county departments as necessary for the county to make a determination.
What can the quarry do now? They can continue to operate as they have historically operated.
A …..Drill? As long as the activity is consistent with the historical operation of the quarry this activity may continue.
B…..Blast? As long as the activity is consistent with the historical operation of the quarry this activity may continue.
C…..Crush rocks? As long as the activity is consistent with the historical operation of the quarry this activity may continue.
D…..Load trucks? As long as the activity is consistent with the historical operation of the quarry this activity may continue.
What days can they operate? There are no land use restrictions on days or hours of operation for the current use.
What hours can they operate? There are no land use restrictions on days or hours of operation for the current use.
What are the limits on production? Lincoln County Planning and Development has not placed any limits on production for the current use.
What is the daily limit on the number loaded trucks allowed on our County roads? Lincoln County Planning and Development has not placed any limits on vehicular traffic to or from the quarry’s location.
Is a hearing planned? Lincoln County has not scheduled any hearings regarding this property.
What is the status of the quarry today? – As of right now, the quarry is still considered a lawful use that existed prior to the adoption of the county’s land use code (answer to previous email question). Is this the official Lincoln County determination regarding our 2016 complaint? I’m not aware of your 2016 complaint, nor am I familiar with the substance of the complaint. My answer may or may not address your complaint. Regardless, the existing use is lawful and is allowed to continue.
Who made this determination? No land use determination has been made. The use as it exists today has demonstrably existed prior to the adoption of the Lincoln County Land Use code. Observation of an existing and continuous use of land does not constitute a land use decision, nor is it a determination made by staff.
Was the 1989 expansion considered in this determination? Again, no determination was made. The existing use was established prior to 1989.
Does Kauffman Crushing/Eckman Creek Quarry need a Conditional Use Permit to operate? No, but they may need a conditional use permit to expand their operations.
Have any applications for a permit been filed since October 2020? Not that I am aware of.
Are they still exempt from enforcement? – No (answer to previous email question).
What exactly is the County going to enforce? Lincoln County will investigate a complaint of a code violation and, if a determination of violation is made, will act in a manner that remedies the violation in a reasonable time-frame as the circumstances require.
Who should be contacted regarding a violation? It depends on the violation; however, Lincoln County’s current policy is to direct individuals who believe some type of code violation is occuring to the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department (non-emergency number: (541) 265-0777) to report a code violation. A code enforcement deputy will then contact you and take your report. That person will investigate the matter and coordinate with the appropriate county departments as necessary for the county to make a determination.
Has Lincoln County issued this quarry a permit to operate? No.
Has another permit application for KC/ECK been filed since the April 2020 TL801 application? No.
Your Email mentioned “ next steps”. What are they please? Lincoln County’s next steps are to determine if a violation of the county’s land use code is occuring.
Were you involved in the 2019 decision to exempt the quarry from code enforcement? – No; however, I’m not aware of any such action, so my answer does not imply that Lincoln County ever exempted the quarry from code enforcement action (answer to previous email question). FYI: John, You should be aware of this. You should check with Director Husing directly, then Mr. Herbage and then Lincoln County Deputy Sheriff Akin. Deputy Akin told me the quarry is “exempt” on a follow up phone call after 5 AM rock crushing complaint. This 2019 complaint was made after our Board of Commissioners, Director Husing and Mr. Belmont, all previously stated this quarry was non-compliant, and should not be conducting those activities, without a permit. Code enforcement is part of County Planning. This was a valid legitimate complaint. This same type of complaint, [County noise ordinance], was enforced during previous administrations. Please investigate this yourself. We should all learn something new and true everyday! I appreciate the information Robert; however, I’m only concerned with the current activities occurring at the quarry. I have no position on previous violations or complaints, nor would this information make any difference in a determination of violation today. The quarry either is or is not operating in a manner consistent with their established use, which pre-dates the county’s land use code requiring the current use to be authorized through a conditional use permit. Because the use occuring at the property right now does not have a conditional use permit, there are no land use conditions governing the use. Lincoln County does not regulate the operation of a quarry through it’s code, with the exception of issuing a conditional use permit to operate a quarry through LCC 1.1630(1) and (12). Since no permit has been issued to this quarry, these standards do not apply at this time.
Has another permit application for KC/ECK been filed since the April 2020 TL801 application? No.
Your Email mentioned “ next steps”. What are they please? Lincoln County’s next steps are to determine if a violation of the county’s land use code is occuring.
Were you involved in the 2019 decision to exempt the quarry from code enforcement? – No; however, I’m not aware of any such action, so my answer does not imply that Lincoln County ever exempted the quarry from code enforcement action (answer to previous email question). FYI: John, You should be aware of this. You should check with Director Husing directly, then Mr. Herbage and then Lincoln County Deputy Sheriff Akin. Deputy Akin told me the quarry is “exempt” on a follow up phone call after 5 AM rock crushing complaint. This 2019 complaint was made after our Board of Commissioners, Director Husing and Mr. Belmont, all previously stated this quarry was non-compliant, and should not be conducting those activities, without a permit. Code enforcement is part of County Planning. This was a valid legitimate complaint. This same type of complaint, [County noise ordinance], was enforced during previous administrations. Please investigate this yourself. We should all learn something new and true everyday! I appreciate the information Robert; however, I’m only concerned with the current activities occurring at the quarry. I have no position on previous violations or complaints, nor would this information make any difference in a determination of violation today. The quarry either is or is not operating in a manner consistent with their established use, which pre-dates the county’s land use code requiring the current use to be authorized through a conditional use permit. Because the use occuring at the property right now does not have a conditional use permit, there are no land use conditions governing the use. Lincoln County does not regulate the operation of a quarry through it’s code, with the exception of issuing a conditional use permit to operate a quarry through LCC 1.1630(1) and (12). Since no permit has been issued to this quarry, these standards do not apply at this time.
So, as I’ve indicated in previous emails, I would like to talk to you about your complaint. Basically, I need to acquire information necessary to make a determination that a violation either exists or does not exist at the quarry. The primary area of concern, as you know, is the parcel to the south of the quarry known as tax lot 801. I would like to discuss this with you when you get a chance, and I’d like to get any information you have regarding the activities that are currently occurring here.
PS We made a request for copies of the April 2020 permit application on TL 801. We have not received a response this was received. Who do we send requests for copies to? I’ll look into this and get back to you.
Please let me know when we can talk, Robert. Thank you,
SEPTEMBER 2022
The quarry recently began drilling. They used an exceptionally loun generator during the drilling.
They worked past 6 pm on a few evenings.
We met with John at the quarry. We discussed hours.
We were given a pre blast phone call. The blast DID NOT have the legally required air horn warnings. ARI does not feel this law applies to them.
The blast occurred just after 4 pm. Very deep, ground shaking and loud.
Crushing began the next day. A new crusher was brought in. Activities are now beginning at 6 am.