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Castaic OKs Chiquita Canyon Money; No Deal Yet For Val Verde

Castaic Area Town Council officials voted this week to accept an agreement with the Chiquita Canyon Landfill.


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The landfill has yet to reach a deal with residents of Val Verde, which is where the dump is located.

Castaic OKs Chiquita Canyon Money; No Deal Yet For Val Verde

Castaic officials submitted a 6-4 vote Wednesday, when they agreed to accept funds from Chiquita Canyon Landfill officials for the community, said Lloyd Carder, a Castaic resident.

Nearly 50 people, the majority from the Val Verde, attended the town council meeting to participate in the open commentary, said Erica Larsen, a Val Verde resident and member of the Citizens for Chiquita Canyon Landfill Compliance.

All were opposed to the landfill’s expansion and, consequently, accepting money from the landfill for their support.

Public comment ends Oct. 23 for an environmental report on the project’s expansion, barring a request to the county from the city of Santa Clarita and several groups for more time to discuss the project.

A key part of the financial arrangement gives 80 cents per ton — based on annual disposal amounts — to the Castaic and Val Verde communities, said John Musella, spokesman for the Chiquita Canyon Landfill.

The financial arrangement calls for support once the final enviormental report is released by the county, Musella said.

Related: Santa Clarita To Join Call For More Time On Chiquita Canyon Landfill

“(The CATC) agreed to split the funds with 70 percent to Val Verde and 30 percent to Castaic,” he said. “Basically, what that means is in the first year, Castaic would receive approximately $240,000 (according to 2013 tonnage), and Val Verde is set to receive $560,000.”

The landfill is negotiating with two groups, the Town Council and the Val Verde Community Advisory Committee. The VVCAC has yet to agree to terms, Musella said.

The amount of money has the ability to go up, as Chiquita Canyon’s expansion calls for an increase in the daily tonnage the landfill would receive. The deal would go on for the length of the landfill’s operation.

Musella said that could be in approximately 21 years and, if approved, this would be the last expansion for the landfill.

The Castaic agreement was voted upon Wednesday night and while the Val Verde residents attended the meeting and voiced their concerns against the landfill, the Val Verde community Advisory Committee have not finalized their agreement yet, Musella said.

Related: Val Verde Residents Ask County For More Time On Landfill Expansion

Some residents who were upset with the terms complained of “loopholes” that they said negated guarantees to the communities, and Carder called the deal seemed like “hush money” to “keep the council quiet.”


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The money is planned to go to a new nonprofit organization, the Chiquita Canyon -Castaic Community Benefit Fund, Musella said. It will not go directly to the council.

“This is a great opportunity for the community of Castaic,” Musella said. “These funds will be available to support the schools, youth programs and the local community in general. It’s not often a local business is able to contribute hundreds of thousands of dollars annually to a local community.”

Musella said the deals have been part of a yearlong negotiation, but some area residents felt the process was being rushed.

“It was kind of sad. People were talking about how the councilmembers should not vote, that they should get legal advice and postpone the vote and (the council members) just voted on it,” Larsen said. “So it was kind of hard to watch that it just got pushed through so fast.”

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Castaic OKs Chiquita Canyon Money; No Deal Yet For Val Verde

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About Jessica Boyer

Jessica is an award-winning journalist, photographer, videographer and artist. She has worked with news organizations including NBC Los Angeles, KHTS AM 1220, and the Pierce College Roundup News. She is studying to receive a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism with an emphasis on Photojournalism and a minor in Communications at California State University, Northridge. She has studied and worked in many fields including filmmaking, journalism, studio photography, and some graphic design. She began her journalism journey at the Arroyo Seco Conquestador News Network and the Saugus High School News Network.