Grass Valley Planning Commission Approves Contractor Yard Expansion

GRASS VALLEY — On Tuesday, November 18, the Grass Valley Planning Commission unanimously approved a Development Review Permit allowing C&D Contractors to expand its long-established equipment yard at 928 Taylorville Road. The 43,000-square-foot expansion will add storage and maneuvering space on property that has served as a contractor’s yard since 1951. The project requires substantial grading and the removal of 36 trees, which triggered the public review process even though the industrial use is fully permitted in the M1 zone.

Nearby Berriman Loop residents, whose homes were built primarily between 2020 and 2023, strongly opposed the expansion. Several speakers said they paid premium prices for lots with unobstructed views toward Empire Mine State Historic Park and that the new pad would place heavy equipment directly in their sightlines. Others described existing noise from early in the morning or late at night, bright security lights that shine into bedrooms, and backup-beepers left running for extended periods.

Supporters emphasized C&D’s essential role in the community. The company employs more than 50 local residents and routinely responds to emergencies including sewer failures, snow removal, storm cleanup, and sinkhole repairs for the City of Grass Valley. Lorraine Larson, Executive Director of Nevada County Habitat for Humanity, noted that C&D has consistently assisted with affordable-housing projects, often on short notice. Representatives for C&D stressed that the project does not increase the scale of operations but simply reorganizes the existing cramped yard for safer and more efficient use.

After hearing nearly an hour of public comment, commissioners acknowledged the legitimate concerns of neighbors but concluded they had no legal grounds to deny a permitted use on industrially zoned land. The panel approved the permit with modified conditions that reduced the required western screening wall from eight feet to five feet, maintained a six-foot fence with privacy slats along Taylorville Road, and required shielded, downward-directed lighting and selection of faster-growing, evergreen screening trees.

With the Planning Commission holding final authority on development review permits, C&D Contractors may now proceed with grading and construction.