Locals Taking Legal Action Against County Commissioners

Story Published: April 13, 2008 at 6:59 PM PDT
By Sade Malloy

Yakima County -- Watch the story

A lawsuit over auto wrecking business. It's been a battle getting the shop to move down the street. It's put Yakima County Commissioners at the center of the dispute. Now one side is taking legal action ... Action News Reporter Sade Malloy has the details on this case.

Yakima County Commissioners gave the ok five months ago. They said yes, Douglas Towing & Auto Wrecking can relocate down the road to Yakima Valley Highway. But locals don't like the idea and they are filing a lawsuit to stop it.

The newly formed group calls themselves Citizens Protecting Resources. There's two dozen members, some involved with local wineries, all working to prevent this from moving into their neighborhood.

Mike Leita, Yakima County Commissioner says, "It is not conducive to having a wrecking yard adjacent to a river that is very volatile to flood."

That's County Commissioner Mike Leita talking to Action News last year.

Commissioners have been working on the move for years now because of environmental safety reasons. CPR isn't questioning that. What they say they're concerned about is the large amounts of County money spent to do so.

Craig Fisher, CPR says,"In the neighborhood of $800,000 that is being spent on this to move a business that's on a site that's probably valued at around $30,000."

Action News reached County Commissioner Rand Elliott by the phone this weekend.

Elliott says the group is exaggerating the numbers. He says the County is only spending half of what the group claims.

It's not just the money CPR is worried about. They claim the County shouldn't even be working out there right now.

Mike Libbee, CPR says, "The conditional use permit created by the county expired March 31st of this year."

Sade Malloy, Action News says, "So CPR wants stop construction on this fence stopped. But County Commissioners tell Action News they got an extension and it was granted last month. "

In Wapato Sade Malloy, Action News.

And CPR is also going after the owners of Douglas Auto Wrecking. And they've also sent a letter to the Washington State Attorney General asked them to stop ..."