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Early Complaints
On January 11, 1954, one resident wrote: "Naturally I am concerned about this problem [the asphalt plants] because I am in the process of purchasing a new home in the Allied Gardens Residential Development tract.  This area east of Grantville is a credit to the future of the valley."
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Another resident stated at a hearing in 1954: "And the asphalt plant is an oil-burning operation. It is one of the hardest to combat, smog-wise. There is an area growing there, this Allied Gardens area that is mentioned, is very close to it [the asphalt plant]... It is bound to be de-valued if it becomes a smog area."
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Ed Fletcher (predecessor to Superior Ready Mix)) argued, at the same 1954 hearing, in favor of installing an asphalt plant on property he owned. Residents were very concerned about the dangers of increased truck traffic on Mission Gorge Road. Mr. Fletcher responded, "So while it is important to these people, it isn't so important it should deprive a property owner of the right to make the use of his property. 
(from archived San Diego City records)
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​​"I am a long-time homeowner in this area. We purchased in 1969 and at that time we were the last homes till you got to Santee, and Mission Gorge was mostly open land.  The quarry was there but as all has grown and changed, so have they.  There has always been blasting, noise and dust/ pollution but if this was brought to their attention, nothing was ever done to improve conditions. Through the different owners of the company, the conditions have gotten worse and are continuing to interfere in our daily living.  The noise is so bad that we can’t enjoy our backyard or have our windows open during operating hours, which can be anytime Monday thru Saturday, and a fine black dusty soot lays over everything."
​ --Sharon S, Allied Garden resident since 1969.

​​The quarry, which was surrounded by residential land, started small. There was huge growth after Superior Ready Mix bought
the property in the 1990s.

The top picture (from San Diego archives) shows that the asphalt plant was not always as close to Mission Gorge Road as it is today.  Superior's Conditional Use Permit prohibits activity on Saturdays within 500 feet of residential structures. Yet Superior chose to put the new asphalt plant in this restricted area, closer to residents in Allied Gardens.

​A TIMELINE

Back in 1930, there was an open pit mine, Canyon Rock, off Mission Gorge Road on the on the north side of the San Diego River. Exactly when the first asphalt plant appeared is unclear, but by 1954, residents were protesting the asphalt plants that were springing up in the newly developing areas, including Allied Gardens, where the need for new roads created a demand for asphaltic products.

In 1954, residents of Grantville and Allied Gardens protested the asphalt plants that were springing up. Ed Fletcher, predecessor to Superior Ready Mix, bluntly states that concerns of residents are not very important to him. (See left column.)

1n 1969, a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) was granted to Superior's predecessors (Ed Fletcher, V.R. Dennis and Kaiser Cement and Gypsum). CUP 238-PC allowed for a rock quarry and borrow pit and portable crushing and screening equipment on 132 acres in a RESIDENTIAL zone. 

By this time, houses in Allied Gardens were completed and sold. The new residents started complaining of noise, dust and odors and were wondering about toxic emissions.

In the 1970's (more or less), more production equipment was added.  A new 200 ton per hour asphalt plant was added. a new portable concrete plant was added that could produce 400 tons per hour.  A new rock crushing plant was added with a production capacity of 200 tons per hour.

In 1983, the CUP was amended and renamed CUP 82-0611. It was expanded to 420 acres. 250 acres were allowed for production and 170 areas were for reclamation (making an additional 118 acres available for production in the CUP area). More conditions were added to the CUP, including a 5-year review of ALL conditions of the Conditional Use Permit. These reviews, however, apparently were rarely done.

In 1990, the CUP was again amended. Changes included making the 5-year review an annual review.  The amount of land in the CUP remained the same (420 acres), but the various divisions mentioned in the 1983 CUP were renamed Subarea A and Subarea B.  Both subareas seemed to be part of the CUP.  Subarea A was mainly for production and was subject to all of the conditions of the CUP.  Subarea B had been previously mined, was only subject to certain conditions, and did NOT have permission for blasting and mining. While this area was frequently referred to as the "reclamation" area, in fact the entire mining area is subject to the reclamation process as mining is completed.  

In 1991 complaints from residents apparently increased and an attempt to resolve these complaints resulted in a draft Memo of Understanding (MOU) that was never signed by all parties and was supposed to be between the City of San Diego, the Navajo Planning Group, the Tierrasanta Planning Group, and V. R. Dennis, (who then owned the facility). However, the City never signed this draft MOU. Although the MOU was not a validly signed document, Superior Ready Mix  held meetings that it claimed were established by this unsigned MOU. 

In 1991, Superior Ready Mix began operating the facility and continued the questionable "MOU" meetings, incorrectly claiming that the meetings were city-sponsored.  In the early 2020s, some residents started to question the intent and validity of these meetings. The meetings apparently ceased by 2025.

After Superior Ready Mix bought the facility in the 1990s, it started expanding production. 
• A second portable rock crusher, capable of 300 tons per hour, was added.
•  Around 1996, a new asphalt plant, rated at 500 tons per hour, replaced the 200 ton per hour old asphalt plant. This new, higher-production asphalt plant was moved closer to Mission Gorge Road, bringing the noise, the odors, the toxic emissions closer to the residents.
•  The rock crushing plant production capability was increased to 900 tons per hour. 
•  With increased production came the need for a significantly larger fleet of trucks. 
•  With the asphalt-carrying trucks came more odors, more tracked-out sediment, more noise.
• ​ ​ There was also a growing concern about the toxicity of the emissions from the plant. 

In 1997, a review of the CUP was brought before the Planning Commission. No changes were made in the CUP.

In 2002, a group of concerned citizens again tried to fight the fumes, noise, dust and odors. Members of the community voiced their concerns at an Allied Gardens Council meeting in 2002.   Representatives of the City, the APCD, and Superior Ready Mix were there to hear the complaints.  But as far as residents could tell, nothing was done. The residents back then were complaining about the same things residents in the 2020's complain about: noise, odors, dust, vibrations.

Also in 2002, the community engaged in dispute resolutions with SRM regarding dust and pollution concerns. A meeting on April 9, 2003, was attended by investigators from the City of San Diego Neighborhood Code Compliance Department, representatives from Superior Ready Mix, and local residents.  A follow up letter on April 24 from the arbitration mediator states that concerns voiced at the meeting “were very helpful in beginning the process of working together to make changes.”   It further states that “If the homeowners and Superior work together, real progress can be made.”  Sadly, residents never saw any improvements that benefited them.  

The early 2000's saw the addition of a new concrete plant. This plant could produce 300 cubic yards per hour.

Around 2018, another push for residents' rights was made.  It was a door-to-door, one-on-one campaign to make residents aware of the source of the dust and odors and the potential toxicity of the fumes. ​Once residents knew whom to call, the Air Pollution Control District (APCD) received more complaints, and they started more investigations. At first, the APCD was suspicious and questioned the residents who complained about why they were calling. The APCD wanted to know about "a person going door-to-door with a clipboard and a petition." However, investigations proved the complaints that were made to be valid.

In late 2019, odors from asphalt production were so obnoxious that SDG&E sent out 5 trucks to investigate the more than a dozen odor complaints SDG&E received from concerned neighbors.  After multiple visits from the fire department, and culminating with a visit from the HAZMAT crew, a total of 6 Public Nuisance Violations were issued by the APCD to Superior.  Superior paid a settlement fee of at least $40,000. Settlement agreements were also made for 1) The installation of a new "blue smoke" filtration unit and 2) the restriction of producing rubberized asphalt. These two items made a big difference in cutting down obnoxious odors.

In 2020, a class action lawsuit was filed against Super Ready Mix because of the odors and dust that residents experienced. The lawsuit was settled out of court with no admission of guilt on Superior's part. There was a monetary award to class members and Superior Ready Mix also agreed to make certain improvements to its facility and operations.

In 2022, protests from residents led to an all-conditions CUP review being opened by the City.  This was the first such review in over 20 years, despite a 1990 amendment of the CUP requiring annual reviews. Hhowever, as of June 3, 2026, nearly four years later, the review has not been completed for various administrative reasons. At one point in time, the City Attorney's Office  apparently determined that, in addition to the review, the CUP should be amended, ensuring that changes to its conditions will occur. Residents viewed this as a significant step forward. It seemed to provide a platform for community input, and it also seemed to allow other City and County agencies to weigh in on Superior Ready Mix’s operations, potentially paving the way for improvements. 

On December 20, 2024, Vulcan Materials Company, bought all of the Superior Ready Mix companies, including the facility on Mission Gorge Road. After aquiring the facility, Vulcan questioned the CUP review with amendments that was already in progress. A year and a half later, the long-overdue CUP review still remains an unfinished process. Additionally, the 1983 version of the CUP was determined to be the governing CUP rather than the more recent 1990 CUP. 

The property is now known as "Superior Ready Mix, a subsidiary of Vulcan Materials Company" or "The Mission Gorge Aggregate Quarry." Nearby residents continue to refer to the facility as "the rock quarry."