Supervisors approve Carson Valley Meats permit in East Carson City following court order ruling
Submitted by Kelsey Penrose on Thu, 07/06/2023 - 6:26pm
In June, an appeal of a decision made by the Carson City Supervisors was struck down, reversing a permit denial of the Carson Valley Meats proposed meat processing facility.
The facility was proposed to be built in the industrial area of east Carson City, which would allow local ranchers a USDA certified location to process their animals for sale.
While supervisors initially upheld appellants, denying the permit to Carson Valley Meats, that decision was recently overruled in a judicial review by Carson City Judge James T. Russell.
Russell said that the board erred in its decision by allowing new information to come forward in violation of the appeals process, and that the appellants did not have standing to appeal the decision in the first place.
Some of the original appellants to oppose the facility urged the supervisors to appeal the decision of the state's Supreme Court.
Kathleen Franco Simmons, one of the original appellants, stated that because the Supreme Court upheld appellants from Douglas County, Russell also should have ruled in favor of appellants in Carson City.
Jennifer Verive, who led one of the appeals of the facility, stated that supervisors were right to uphold their appeals the first time, and that the Carson City District Attorney should have done more to support the appellants.
“When Douglas County was fighting for their right not to have a slaughter house near residential neighborhoods, their district attorney reached out to concerned citizens to help them prepare their case,” Verive said. “With respect, our district attorney didn’t do that. Maybe that was a factor in the outcome.”
Verive said that this issue was “uniting citizens across the city.”
Lina Tanner, the attorney for Carson Valley Meats, clarified some points made by other commenters. She said that comparing this case to Douglas County was “apples to oranges,” as the two cases are very different.
“This case is different property, different county, different code, different standards, and an entirely different system was proposed in Douglas County,” Tanner said.
Specifically, in Douglas County a septic system had been proposed which, at the time, the Nevada Department of Environmental Protection had not had a chance to evaluate the system, according to Tanner.
What the appeal came down to, Tanner said, was that the appeals process did not align with Carson City ordinances.
“It was not a time to discuss flood plains, or emotions,” Tanner said.
Supervisor Curt Horton, though he was not a member of the board during the initial ruling, said since that time he has had many discussions about the proposed facility with the public, many of whom have been in favor of the facility.
“No matter which way this situation goes today, there will be people very unhappy with all of us,” Horton said. “Because there are people who support it and there are people who are against it. It’s that simple. Our job today is to make the best decision for the community overall, and to be conscious of what might happen in the future. It’s not the simplest decision to make, but you can be assured it will be a well informed decision moving forward.”
Supervisor Lisa Schuette said she agreed with Horton’s statements, and that she had gone back and reviewed the planning commission meetings and the appeals.
“There is no right answer, there is no wrong answer,” Schuette said. “I would let everyone know that we really take this seriously and we bare the stomach aches of knowing people will be disappointed and we strive to make the right decision for our community.”
Supervisor Maurice White said that he believed the community has been heard on the issue.
“The community has been heard, over and over again, on both sides of the aisle,” White said. “Hours at the Planning Commission, hours at this board. Myself, offline, I’ve spent discussing this with the District Attorney’s Office, reviewing case files, looking at different ordnances and laws … I’ve read everything that came in the late material. I cannot find a path to victory if we go forward. It’s not there, in my opinion.”
Supervisors voted unanimously to uphold the order issued by the courts, which allows the permit for the Carson Valley Meats proposed meat processing facility.
Whether or not Carson Valley Meats will move forward with the facility is not known at this time.
To learn more about that proposed facility, see our previous reporting here.
