NEVADA CITY - The Nevada County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on Friday to deny Rise Gold Grass Valley's petition to reopen the historic Idaho Maryland Mine, a decision met with a roar of cheers and applause from a crowd of community members in fierce opposition to the project.
"You just wish they'd go away and get it. This is not happening here. This is not what we want," said Wendy Thompson, a Nevada County resident.
The decision follows six hours of public comment by more than 80 people in a hearing that spanned two days.
County supervisors moved 5-0 to deny the Rise Gold Project and the certification of the Final Environmental Impact Report (EIR), consistent with what was recommended to the board by the county's planning commission in May 2023.
"It came down to a project that doesn't reflect the current values of our community," Board of Supervisors Chairman Hardy Bullock told CBS13 after the vote.
There was hardly an empty seat in the chamber as the board decided the fate of the mine both Thursday and Friday.
"It's obvious darn near all the voices in our community were against the mine. I think despite those voices, the process was fair, it was transparent, it was nonbiased," Bullock said. "It took into account scientific data that led to the decision today. The project doesn't adequately protect our community for the future."
CBS13 reported in December 2023 that the board of supervisors voted Rise Gold did not have a "vested right" to reopen the mine without county approval.
The historic, once top-producing mine has been closed since the mid-1950s. Rise Gold purchased it in 2017 with the belief there is untapped gold lying in wait underneath the former Gold Rush town.
"The project would have great benefits to the county and working-class families through the creation of jobs indirectly and directly," said Rise Gold attorney Chris Powell in testimony at the public hearing Friday.
Ultimately, the county decided a few hundred jobs was not enough to outweigh what the supervisors all agreed would be the near-promise of unwanted environmental impacts and unpredictable problems.
"Those promises have to be kept not only now but for 80 years in the future. We didn't trust that everything would go perfectly," Bullock told CBS13. "I didn't feel like the EIR addressed those unavoidable and significant impacts to our environment."
The mine sits just a few miles from downtown Grass Valley and is right in the middle of what is now a residential area.
County leaders now hope Rise Gold finds some other use for the land.
"They could sell it. They could offer it for other community benefit uses, open spaces, trails. There's a pond and a water course. They could put a conservation easement on it and buy themselves a tax break," Bullock said.
Bullock admits a lawsuit will likely be Rise Gold's last resort to strike gold after striking out.
"We would hope that they would not use taxpayer resources to defend what, in my opinion, was a valid jurisdictional process and legislative process from this elected body. The community and the people elected to represent them have spoken," Bullock said.
Rise Gold CEO Joe Mullin sent CBS13 a statement following the board's decision. It reads in full:
"By denying the Company the ability to reopen the Mine, Nevada County has effected a taking of the Mine. Under the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, the County must compensate Rise for the value taken. Based on comparable mines and the historic yield at the Mine, we estimate our mineral estate to be worth not less than $400 million."
It is expected the fight to reopen the mine will now continue in court.
The two public hearings can be watched in their entirety online.
Golden dreams turned to dust: Bid to reopen Nevada County mine denied after days of public comment, testimony
By Ashley Sharp, Brandon Downs
/ CBS Sacramento
NEVADA CITY - The Nevada County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on Friday to deny Rise Gold Grass Valley's petition to reopen the historic Idaho Maryland Mine, a decision met with a roar of cheers and applause from a crowd of community members in fierce opposition to the project.
"You just wish they'd go away and get it. This is not happening here. This is not what we want," said Wendy Thompson, a Nevada County resident.
The decision follows six hours of public comment by more than 80 people in a hearing that spanned two days.
County supervisors moved 5-0 to deny the Rise Gold Project and the certification of the Final Environmental Impact Report (EIR), consistent with what was recommended to the board by the county's planning commission in May 2023.
"It came down to a project that doesn't reflect the current values of our community," Board of Supervisors Chairman Hardy Bullock told CBS13 after the vote.
There was hardly an empty seat in the chamber as the board decided the fate of the mine both Thursday and Friday.
"It's obvious darn near all the voices in our community were against the mine. I think despite those voices, the process was fair, it was transparent, it was nonbiased," Bullock said. "It took into account scientific data that led to the decision today. The project doesn't adequately protect our community for the future."
CBS13 reported in December 2023 that the board of supervisors voted Rise Gold did not have a "vested right" to reopen the mine without county approval.
The historic, once top-producing mine has been closed since the mid-1950s. Rise Gold purchased it in 2017 with the belief there is untapped gold lying in wait underneath the former Gold Rush town.
"The project would have great benefits to the county and working-class families through the creation of jobs indirectly and directly," said Rise Gold attorney Chris Powell in testimony at the public hearing Friday.
Ultimately, the county decided a few hundred jobs was not enough to outweigh what the supervisors all agreed would be the near-promise of unwanted environmental impacts and unpredictable problems.
"Those promises have to be kept not only now but for 80 years in the future. We didn't trust that everything would go perfectly," Bullock told CBS13. "I didn't feel like the EIR addressed those unavoidable and significant impacts to our environment."
The mine sits just a few miles from downtown Grass Valley and is right in the middle of what is now a residential area.
County leaders now hope Rise Gold finds some other use for the land.
"They could sell it. They could offer it for other community benefit uses, open spaces, trails. There's a pond and a water course. They could put a conservation easement on it and buy themselves a tax break," Bullock said.
Bullock admits a lawsuit will likely be Rise Gold's last resort to strike gold after striking out.
"We would hope that they would not use taxpayer resources to defend what, in my opinion, was a valid jurisdictional process and legislative process from this elected body. The community and the people elected to represent them have spoken," Bullock said.
Rise Gold CEO Joe Mullin sent CBS13 a statement following the board's decision. It reads in full:
It is expected the fight to reopen the mine will now continue in court.
The two public hearings can be watched in their entirety online.
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