City staff updated the Valley Center City Council on inspections and permitting at the Dependable Pallets site and on recent dust complaints.

Kyle (city staff) said fire personnel found the exterior pallet stacks within the fire code’s allowable limits and that building plans had cleared trade reviews; staff expect the internal ‘‘rough-in’’ and subsequent final permit stages to progress over the coming months. Kyle said the construction schedule calls for about 90 days for rough-ins and a second 90-day period for finals under the current permit timeline, though the contractor hopes to finish sooner.

On dust concerns, Kyle said fire inspectors observed dust near a collection bin at Conner Industries on a recent visit and that inspectors found the site’s dust-collection machine was not running when they arrived. Staff are working to determine whether Conner Industries experienced a malfunction and whether that source or another (including used-pallet processing) caused the visible dust on Veterans Day. Kyle said he had not received photographic evidence or complaints showing the severity of the most recent incident and that the city would continue to investigate.

Why it matters: Residents previously reported visible dust deposits and driveway impacts; the city is balancing code compliance, permit processing, and continued investigation to identify the source.

Next steps: Staff will monitor permit progress, continue coordinating with fire and code enforcement, and investigate the most recent dust reports; updates will be provided to council as information becomes available.