Spoil to Soil is asking a judge to restore its ability to operate while the composter’s second lawsuit with Summit County plays out.
The request is part of a temporary restraining order the company wants imposed on the county that accompanies a new 3rd District Court lawsuit.
Filed April 15, it echoes a 2025 legal action that claimed Summit County had unfairly targeted the waste recycler for permit violations. That lawsuit died in March because Spoil to Soil never served the county.
April 15 was also the deadline set by regulators for Spoil to Soil to fix the cited problems and reapply for a permit to reopen.
County planner Amir Caus told KPCW that didn’t happen and that staff documented other unfixed issues on a site visit April 16.
Planners and code enforcement staff met with Spoil to Soil and the Summit County Council in late February about the problems ahead of the April deadline.
But the facility and its landlord Jared Clayton maintain that the county hasn’t been fair. The latest complaint says “the county’s process was driven by a voluminous number of complaints from a business competitor and characterized by a ‘moving target’ compliance regime.”
“Our intention is to work with the county,” Clayton said at the February council meeting. “We were never, like, ‘Let's go to court and do this,’ but we had to reserve our rights.”
Summit County hasn’t yet filed a response. Caus said planning staff hope to meet with the county council about the issue in May.
Spoil to Soil’s alleged violations have included accepting nonpermitted materials like snow, plastic and metal; processing soils; operating after hours; laying out the site incorrectly; and failing to submit required paperwork.
Prior to being shut down, Spoil to Soil had customers around Summit County. Now organizations like the Park City Community Foundation send compost to the Salt Lake City area.
