This Tuesday, March 2, the state Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA) will hear Riverbend Landfill's appeal from the County's decision to deny its expansion application. LUBA will hear legal arguments only; there will be no witnesses, and no other evidence will be presented.
Due to Covid restrictions, the hearing will be virtual. People who are interested can listen to the arguments on their phones. To listen, call 1-877-848-7030 at least two minutes before 1:00 PM (the time scheduled for oral argument); when asked for the Participant Code, enter 240954. Be sure your phone is set on "mute."
Please note that the exact time the Riverbend case will be heard is never certain, as there are usually at least three cases scheduled for each court session.
To help ensure that background noise is kept to a minimum during the hearing, the attorneys have asked that people planning to listen in let them know ahead of time. Please contact Ilsa Perse, info@stopthedump.com, for more information.
Background. The landfill originally filed its expansion application in 2008. At the time, Riverbend sought to expand its then 96-acre footprint, sandwiched between the South Yamhill River and important tourist Highway 18, to be "twice as wide, twice as high." The County approved that expansion, but the courts struck it down.
This scenario has since played out again and again until the County finally denied the latest proposal, a much scaled-down expansion that would nevertheless bring a towering pile of waste right up to the edge of the highway. Chances are whoever loses at LUBA will appeal to the next court.
