ojai news at The Ojai Post :: blog, newspaper, events in Ojai, California

According to Nao Braverman's stories, "A new asphalt mixing plant to be built in Santa Paula has local residents concerned about more gravel trucks traveling through Ojai, this time on Highway 150 right through the center of town..." According to Bruce McGowan, a branch manager for Granite Construction Co., the firm intends to submit plans to the Santa Paula Planning Department by the end of the month.

"...The plant, which will get 70 percent of its materials from nearby sand and gravel mines, is considering purchasing from mines in Los Angeles County’s Palmdale as well as mines in the Cuyama Valley region. The remaining 30 percent will come from recycled materials onsite, said McGowan..."

"...Granite Construction Co., one of the nation’s largest constructions material producers, is in the process of purchasing a site on Mission Rock Road, just off of Highway 126 in Santa Paula. The company is seeking a permit to produce up to 450,000 tons of asphalt per year, with an initial production of about 250,000 to 300,000 tons.

But Granite Construction is not the only Santa Paula project that citizens are afraid might route truck trips through the Ojai Valley. A large-scale housing development project being considered in Adams Canyon might trigger the need for gravel or concrete, and send trucks through Ojai..."

"The (Stop the Trucks) committee’s goals are to prevent the Diamond Rock mine from routing trucks south through Ojai, to defeat the Ozena Valley mine’s permit renewal and ultimately for Caltrans to declare that the portion of Highway 33 above Ojai is unfit for heavy trucks."

Route 150 from Santa Paula, through Ojai, to Carpenteria is designated a "Truck Route" by Caltrans. The bridge at San Antonio Creek is the only bridge that has not been replaced or strengthened by Caltrans since the floods of 2005. As such it remains the only barrier to turning the central core of Ojai into an industrial route for gravel trucks.

Many people consider Route 150 and even more unlikely road for trucking than Route 33. Recognizing the significance of this bridge in blocking Caltrans' plans, the Ojai City Council has directed City Manager Jere Kersnar to inform Caltrans that is has not signed off or approved of their plans to upgrade the bridge.