The Town of Sahuarita will review a proposed development agreement Wednesday that could end efforts by Vulcan Materials to put a hot-mix asphalt plant next to Quail Creek.
According to the town, the agreement would have Vulcan continue using the land “as guaranteed by a 2000 development agreement” and the company would withdraw its request for a Conditional Use Permit to operate a hot-mix asphalt plant. Vulcan also would relinquish the right to operate a hot-mix asphalt there “in perpetuity.”
“This really has been a collaborative approach to what I think is a win-win for all parties,” Town Manager Shane Dille said Monday evening after the announcement was made.
A public meeting is set for 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 24, at Town Hall. An earlier closed-door executive session will be held at noon and is not open to the public.
According to the release, the town and Vulcan “engaged in a series of discussions that resulted in an alternative course of action for the community” days before the requirement to notify the public of the first public hearing before the Planning & Zoning Commission.
John Backer, chairman of the town’s Planning & Zoning Commission, said Monday he was unaware of any discussions, “but if it’s a win-win for everybody, then that’s great.”
Alabama-based Vulcan Materials applied for a Type 3 Conditional Use Permit in February 2023. Since then, community organizers mostly out of Quail Creek — which would be about a half-mile from the edge of the plant — have held petition events opposing the permit and have used the Town Council’s call to the audience to voice opposition.
Public hearings were delayed three times last year as opposition mounted and the council sought more input on the project.
Vulcan did not respond to a request for comment, and Mayor Tom Murphy deferred questions to Dille and a town spokeswoman.
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