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inaccurate; it appears that the Air Quality Management District did not confirm with the County the existence of any CEQA documents.) The plant took approximately one week to construct (Granite disputes this point) and once it started operation in the summer of 2002, it had an immediate, negative impact on the area, most significantly as to odors, noise, and lights. Because oil derivatives are used in producing asphalt, the plant produces a smell similar to that produced by oil refineries. When the plant produces rubberized asphalt, the odor intensifies and has a smell similar to roof tar. Initially, the plant's pneumatic valves made a loud hissing sound which could be heard some distance away. Also initially, the lights on the plant had no deflectors and during darkness lit up the surrounding area. In response to complaints, Granite took steps to reduce the noise and to deflect the lights; the smell/odor, however, remained. There are also aesthetic issues with the plant, as many consider it to be visually obtrusive within the Vineyard Avenue Corridor. Residents and City staff contacted the County on several occasions to ascertain how this plant was allowed to be constructed without a public review process. Over the course of a year, a number of meetings were held between residents, Supervisor Haggerty, County planning staff and City staff in an effort to determine what could be done to address the plant's location. In October 2003, the County Planning Department sent a letter to the then property owner RMC Pacific Materials notifying RMC that the plant needed to be moved in that its current location constituted a nuisance. RMC was advised that unless the plant were moved, the matter would be brought to the County Planning Commission for consideration of revoking RMC's Surface Mining Permit, its Quarry Permit, or both. There followed a number of hearings before the Alameda County Planning Commission but there was no resolution concerning the relocation of the plant. In January 2005, representatives from the City, the County, Granite and RMC Lonestar met in an effort to resolve the matter. Agreement was reached in principle that the plant would be moved by the spring of 2009 assuming certain conditions were met (e.g., another site on the RMC property could be prepared, the City would contribute toward the relocation cost, Granite could produce rubberized asphalt on a limited basis, etc.). The City insisted on some type of public review process concerning the relocation, not wishing to impose on others in the County the same surprise that our residents experienced when the plant was put up almost over night. Over the next two and a half years, negotiations over the details were off and on. Recently, the County planning staff indicated that the County and Granite were close to reaching an agreement on the timing of the plant's relocation, and that the Board would be taking action at its July 31 meeting. The Board approved the MOU unanimously on July 31. Page 3 of 5