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HOUGHTON -- The controversy surrounding the Valley View Quarry gravel pit in Portage Township came to the Houghton County Circuit Courtroom Monday.  Some residents say it's creating a nuisance in their neighborhood.

After hearing from the three parties involved, Gogebic County Judge Roy Gotham said he would need more information regarding a specific zoning issue to make a decision.

Portage Township residents packed into the courtroom for the hearing in the joint case against Moyle’s Valley View Quarry gravel pit.

Kevin Grezlek and Vic and Emily Betterly live closest to the site and filed a lawsuit last September stating that the excess noise, dust, and vibration is a nuisance.  Referring to them as the "forgotten people," attorney Steve Pence explained that their complaints had been ignored for years.

However, the township’s attorney, Nick Daavettila, saw it more simply than that.

"I don't know how the ordinance could be clearer,” said Daavettila.  “The allowable uses are laid out, and gravel extraction isn't one of them.  In other sections, it's available as a special use, but there's no special use for it in an area zoned 'rural residential'."

Moyle's attorney, Matthew Heron, argued that the company had a vested interest in the property since they had operated their business, legally or not, for years.  He also raised the issue of exclusionary zoning.  In other words, the township is unreasonably preventing the company from having its business because the only areas where a gravel pit would be allowed didn't have the same quality or quantity of rock.

"If the Moyles are operating under reasonable terms and operating a skillful business, then the effects of that operation on the plaintiffs could not be unreasonable," said Heron.

The judge has given each of the attorneys 30 days to submit a written brief concerning exclusionary zoning as it applies to the township and the quarry.  They'll have an additional 10 days following to review and respond to opposing arguments.

The judge will issue his written decision at a later date.