American Iron and Metal wants to build a metal recycling plant in the Rio Grande Industrial Park. The facility will be located just more than a mile from Rio Communities, and it’s got some residents upset, so upset that two of them filed an appeal of the Valencia County Planning and Zoning Commission’s approval of the company’s preliminary site plans.

On Wednesday, the company will come before the county commission to argue why the planning and zoning commission was right. Regardless of the arguments it makes, the company has already beaten the appeal — and it has nothing to do with arguments over the legitimacy of zoning or site plans.

Last week, when the county commission considered delaying this week’s public hearing on the issue, the lawyer for the plant did something smart: He chopped the commission in half.

Commissioners Pedro Rael and Don Holliday, based on their comments last week, are going to vote in favor of the metal plant. Rael’s vote is less certain, but he thinks the appellants don’t even have a right to bring the appeal. Unless the appellants can find residents who live within view of the plant to the public hearing, they’ve got no chance with Rael. Holliday on the other hand was much more blunt. He said he thinks the appellants and county are doing nothing but holding up a good business and new jobs.

Commissioner Ron Gentry, obviously, will vote against the metal plant. He’s been outspoken against it, even if he won’t admit it. He’s also the only person who owns land next to the proposed construction site. Last week, the lawyer for American Iron and Metal tried to get Gentry to recuse himself because of that fact. The lawyer might try again, but he may not even need to with the way the votes have already lined up.

Commissioner Georgia Otero-Kirkham is out of the vote. She recused herself last week on such a small thing as delaying the hearing. She essentially argued that she does, in fact, have a conflict of interest. It would be very unusual if, after recusing herself last week, she now chose to vote.

Medina didn’t speak up last week but voted against Rizzo’s request for a delayed public hearing. He might be undecided on the metal plant, the zoning, and the site plans.

The vote on the appeal takes place next week, after this week’s public hearing. The motion will likely be along the lines of accepting the appellants’ arguments, which stops the metal recycling plant from moving forward. But with the commission chopped in half, two to two, with Otero-Kirkham out and assuming Medina is in opposition to the plant, that kills the appeal by a tie.

The metal plant wins, unless the appellants or others decide to challenge it at a higher level, say, in court.

This page was published on July 6, 2009 at 11:02am and is filed under Rio Communities, Valencia County. You may copy and paste this page's link to email it.