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$50 mil suit could test Measure 7 By Melissa Martin In what may be the state�s first Measure 7 case, a Medford attorney has filed a lawsuit in federal court demanding $50 million in compensation from Jacksonville and Jackson County for failing to grant a mining permit. Bob Robertson filed the suit Friday in U.S. District Court on behalf of Jackson Creek Sand Co., which wants to mine 18 million tons of aggregate at the site of the old Opp Mine outside Jacksonville. Robertson is also a partner in the company. Jackson County denied Jackson Creek Sand Co. a conditional use permit to extract the aggregate last year, and Jacksonville opposed the mining plans because of the added truck traffic it would bring into the town�s historic district. This may be the first land-use compensation case filed since Oregon voters last week approved Measure 7, which allows property owners to ask local and state governments to pay compensation for land-use restrictions. The measure is to take effect 30 days after the vote. Robertson arrived at the $50 million amount by estimating that Jackson Creek Sand Co. could have extracted and sold 18 million tons of hard rock from 39 acres for $1 to $2 per ton. The 150-acre site contains a total of 100 million tons of aggregate, he said. "We�re asking the court to award us the value of the property, including the hard rock content," he said. Robertson said he filed the suit in federal court because the mine�s primary owner, Bernadine Wynnyk, is a resident of Kelowna, British Columbia, and because he hopes the case would be tried outside of Jackson County. Robertson said he interpreted the Measure 7 text as saying that the newly approved law would be implemented by the federal government. Kurt Knudsen, attorney for the city of Jacksonville, said Friday he couldn�t comment on the lawsuit because he did not have a copy of the document to read and he had not been served notice of the suit. Neither had Jacksonville Mayor Jim Lewis. It�s possible Jacksonville and Jackson County could respond with a constitutional challenge to Measure 7, according to a state land use watchdog group. "The measure can be read in many different ways," said Robert Liberty, an attorney and the executive director of 1000 Friends of Oregon. He said local governments could challenge the law�s legality. "There�s tremendous uncertainty about what it means. This and subsequent filings occurring around the state need to be watched very closely." The Jacksonville mine property is the site of the richest gold strike and the worst disaster in Southern Oregon quartz mining history. Gertrude Opp, daughter of the turn-of-the-century miner John Opp, guided Robertson around the property about 10 years ago and showed him the location of an explosion that killed three miners and buried gold ore-filled railroad cars beneath a pile of rocks. Robertson had planned to extract and sell the rock to get to the gold ore. Because there�s no way to determine if the railroad cars are still there or whether there�s any gold in the ore, the $50 million Robertson is asking for in compensation is for aggregate and land only, not gold, he said. In September, the city�s attorney filed a complaint with the Oregon State Bar alleging Robertson threatened to sue neighbors for testifying against the mining plan in a public hearing. Robertson said he only promised to respond to legal attempts to block his right to mine the claim, especially attempts made by the city of Jacksonville. "I never threatened anyone for testifying," he said. The Oregon State Bar is still investigating the complaint, a spokesman said Friday. Reach reporter Melissa Martin at 776-4477, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.