CITY MAY ANNEX MINE SITE LANDOWNER GROUP ADDS PARCEL TO PROPOSAL.

Byline: Angela M. Lemire Staff Writer

CANYON COUNTRY - The owner of land eyed for a massive federal mine in Soledad Canyon plans to include the property in a new annexation drive being mobilized for 3,000 acres in Canyon Country.

The annexation proposal, tentatively named Curtis Ranch, so far involves five property owners of undeveloped parcels between Sand Canyon and Agua Dulce Canyon Road, including Soledad Canyon, said landowner Ben Curtis, the group's spokesman. Four homes are scattered throughout the combined areas, he said.

With the drive still in early planning stages, the group has not set boundaries for a proposed annexation area yet, said Curtis, nor has it presented a formal annexation and development plan to the city.

City officials had introductory meetings with the group this week, according to city Planner Jeff Lambert.

Curtis, of Curtis Sand & Gravel in Canyon Country, owns a 1,200-acre property on which the federal Bureau of Land Management has claimed mineral rights for a 500-acre area. His company lost mining rights in a competitive bidding process in the early 1990s.

The federal government's mining contractor, Azusa-based Transit Mixed Concrete, early this week appealed the Los Angeles County Planning Commission's recent denial of its application to blast 56 million tons of sand and gravel from Curtis' land over a 20-year period. The first appeals hearing before the county Board of Supervisors is set for May 23.

Along with the city of Santa Clarita, area town councils, schools, numerous residents and environmentalists, Curtis has been an outspoken opponent to TMC's mining plan. He testified to county planning commissioners in December that he believed TMC's work plan was inadequate, claiming the proposal lacked the best available technology that would reduce more negative environmental impacts to surrounding neighborhoods. TMC officials have denied the claim.

``I am in the mining industry and I own the land, but I am opposed to this mining project,'' Curtis reiterated Friday.

The annexation of Curtis' Soledad Canyon property could increase the city's leverage in its continuing fight against the mining project, city officials say, but only if the appeals process with the county Board of Supervisors drags on long enough - perhaps another year.

``In a best-case scenario, it takes at least nine months to process an annexation,'' said Lambert. ``There are many technical steps to go through.''

If a project is approved by the county and later annexed by the city, the city becomes responsible for enforcing the project's conditions of approval, Lambert said.

Mining site aside, the group of landowners is working together, Curtis said, because it foresees other benefits from annexing the 3,000 acres into Santa Clarita.

``It's a local control issue,'' Curtis said. ``We feel the county has not been responsive to our needs. We're feeling we have to take it into our own hands and do something about it.''

One objective would be to bring various wage-competitive commercial and industrial businesses to Canyon Country, a highly residential area that straddles the city's eastern border, he said.

The group envisions developing areas on the hilly terrain primarily for commercial and industrial centers, plus some small housing developments, said Curtis. Several housing options are being considered, he said, including condominiums, small housing tracts and large estate homes.

Housing development likely would resemble rural neighborhoods of Agua Dulce and Acton, to maintain an ``open, Western'' feel, Curtis said.

City officials so far have been receptive to the group's proposal, said Lambert. The city General Plan calls for business park and low-density, residential estates for that area, he said.