Sriracha saga continues: Need a hot time in the old town tonight?

On behalf of Kaplin Stewart Meloff Reiter & Stein, P.C. posted in Land Use & Zoning on Feb 10, 2014.

Considering the weather these past few weeks, it might be time for a quick trip to a truly hot spot: the Sriracha sauce factory. Huy Fong Foods Inc., maker of the famous “rooster sauce,” is offering tours of its 650,000-square-foot factory on the West Coast. Local newspapers published an open letter from the company in early February that invited anyone to make an appointment to visit the 6-month-old facility.

This is the same facility, the same company that is involved in litigation with its hometown. And, yes, this is the same company that Councilman at-Large Jim Kenney wrote to in November 2013 with an invitation to relocate to Philadelphia. We wrote about Kenney’s proposal in our Nov. 16 post.

After neighbors complained about the fumes from the factory, the city asked the court for relief. In November, the court ordered a temporary halt to any production processes that caused or contributed to the fumes. The city still wants a permanent injunction that would shutter the operation. The city claims that the factory is a public nuisance and, according to a city attorney, that the company breached its contract with the city.

The contract in question is the operating permit granted by the city. The breach-of-contract claim is only a new legal theory for the city; the fumes from the factory are still at the center of the dispute. It is interesting to note that the city pursued Huy Fong Foods when the company was looking to relocate.

The company is willing to acquire smell-abatement technology and is reportedly negotiating the details with the city. If the matter is not settled, the trial is set for November, according to CBS Los Angeles.

Sources: 

Los Angeles Times, “More legal woes for Sriracha plant in fight with Irwindale,” Frank Shyong, Jan. 31, 2014

Pasadena Star-News, “Sriracha maker Huy Fong Foods invites public for tours of Irwindale factory,” Lauren Gold, Feb. 4, 2014

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