(Nevada County) Airport lawsuit on hold for 90 days

Both sides involved in a dispute over a plan protecting the Nevada County Airport have agreed to put a pending lawsuit on hold.

The Nevada County Airport Land Use Commission met in closed session Wednesday, and authorized staff and legal counsel to move forward with a “tolling” agreement for 90 days, said Executive Director Dan Landon.

The agreement puts the suit on hold for three months “to see if we can work through the issues without going through litigation,” Landon said. “We will continue to meet with the city of Grass Valley to reach a resolution.”

After the commission approved an airport land use compatibility plan in Sept. 21, developers and Grass Valley city officials charged the commission with not properly notifying landowners of the potential impact of the plan on their property. The plan is intended to protect airport operation from development going up around it, and to protect people from the risk of aircraft mishaps.

The city and the property owners had asked a judge to overturn the airport’s land use compatibility plan, filing a petition in Nevada County Superior Court and in Sacramento County Superior Court.

Grass Valley City Council approved a similar action to put the suit on hold last week, Landon said.

“Now we’re on the same wavelength,” he added.