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Sand firm looks for gold Mail Tribune / Steve Johnson Medford lawyer Bob Robertson explores the shaft of an old gold mine outside Jacksonville. Robertson and his business partners have a controversial proposal to mine gravel at the site � and unearth railroad cars full of gold ore buried in a turn-of-the-century mine explosion. Neighbors oppose gravel dig at site of 1906 mine blast By Melissa Martin JACKSONVILLE � Where a hiker sees a mound of rock, Medford attorney Bob Robertson sees a pot of gold. Robertson and his Jackson Creek Sand Co. partners want to begin crushing and hauling rock from a Jacksonville hillside. In the process, they hope to uncover gold from the old Opp Mine � site of the richest gold strike and the worst disaster in Southern Oregon quartz mining history. About 10 years ago, Gertrude Opp, daughter of the turn-of-the-century miner John Opp, guided Robertson around the property. "She brought us to this spot and told us about an explosion that caused her dad to close down one of the most profitable veins because the rock was so fractured," Robertson said as he hiked the property Tuesday. She gave Robertson another nugget of information: If he removed the granite from the gully, he would find railroad cars loaded with gold ore buried at the bottom. According to a 1992 edition of the Southern Oregon Historical Society�s Table Rock Sentinel, a powder explosion on Jan. 18, 1906, killed three miners. It was the region�s most serious mining accident. Because modern-day gold mining doesn�t pay, Robertson plans to get to the bottom of the pile by crushing, hauling and selling hard rock. He hopes to be more successful than the last gold digger � a Canadian company that Robertson was forced to foreclose on about four years ago. "We will run the rock operation and the bonus will be finding gold," the Texas native said. That plan doesn�t sit well with about half the 50 neighboring property owners. And the city is not happy with the estimated 20 more gravel trucks added each day to Jacksonville streets. "It�s totally absurd that they want to put another heavy-duty aggregate mine one-quarter of a mile away from Pair-a-dice Ranch Road, which has a constant stream of trucks," said neighbor Leonie Corbeth. She�s concerned about a dangerous intersection of three roads � Reservoir Road, which serves the mine, Mary Ann Lane, a residential road owned by the city, and state Highway 238. "You can�t see to get onto Highway 238," Corbeth said. "There�s a hillside there and you�d have to blast it away to create better visibility." Eric Niemeyer, Jackson County traffic engineer, agreed. The entrance would likely be moved, the hillside cut and the Reservoir Road reconstructed to a 90-degree angle with the highway. "There would be some major work involved there," Niemeyer said. Jackson Creek Sand Co. plans to pay for all road improvements, including paving and straightening curves on Reservoir Road and realigning it with the highway, estimated to cost $200,000. The gravel company has also offered to contribute 5 cents per yard to a fund that would compensate neighbors. So far, about five Reservoir Road residents have taken up the company�s offer, Robertson said. Robertson and his partners, Frank Hardin of Medford and Bernadine Wynnyk of Canada, would extract 100,000 to 500,000 yards of rock annually � a total of 16 to 20 million yards � on 30 acres near the center of the 117-acre parcel that is criss-crossed with underground tunnels hand-dug in the late 1800s. Part of the gravel removal will be near where John Opp discovered $19,500 worth of gold in three different strikes in May and June 1905, according to history writer Sue Waldron. But the explosion in 1906 collapsed many of the tunnels that are still hazardous for modern-day miners. Jackson Creek Sand Co.�s plans call for blasting to close the tunnels and make the surface more secure for rock crushers and other mining equipment. Jackson County approved the operation with conditions that include keeping activity away from Jackson Creek, restricting hauling and operating hours, and building settling ponds to prevent erosion. Robertson said Jackson Creek Sand Co. didn�t have to apply for a conditional use permit; it did it to be a good neighbor. "This property has been in mining use off and on for 140 years," Robertson said. "We have a pre-existing use." Jacksonville appeals plans to mine hard rock JACKSONVILLE � Jackson County broke its own rules when it approved Jackson Creek Sand Co.�s plans to crush and haul hard rock from the old Opp Mine, the City of Jacksonville contends. The city appealed the county�s decision to a Jackson County hearings officer, which heard the appeal Monday and continued the hearing to Aug. 28. The city also asked a Jackson County judge to review the action. The city argues that since the request was denied once this spring, it�s too soon for the county to accept another application. "The county code says you can�t accept another application on something that�s been denied until one year after the denial," said Paul Wyntergreen, Jacksonville city administrator. "The county should not have accepted another application (from the company) until March 2001," Wyntergreen said. Besides objecting to county procedure, the city opposes the county decision to allow more gravel trucks on the historic town�s streets, he said. "This would be additional truck traffic in the downtown area that�s already feeling an impact on its historic buildings," Wyntergreen said. 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