Huy Fong Food's Sriracha plant will stay in Irwindale, Calif., after all.
According to The Los Angeles Times, the municipality's city council voted to drop its declaration Wednesday that initially deemed the facility a public nuisance following a 4-0 vote on April 10. The issue stemmed from 30 residents in the area complaining of stinging eyes and itchy throats on November 27, 2013.
Officials did not offer any new information from a pre-vote private meeting and site visit Tuesday. Two representatives from California Gov. Jerry Brown's office attended the negotiations along with Irwindale, Calif., city manager John Davidson, Mayor Mark Breceda, Councilman Julian Miranda, and Huy Fong Foods' CEO David Tran.
According to KTTV television in Los Angeles, Tran considered moving his company's plant to another state after months of courtroom battles with Irwindale residents.
Ten states tried to woo Tran's factory over, including Arizona, New Mexico, Alabama, Pennsylvania and Louisiana. Other states included Kansas, Ohio, Georgia, Iowa and West Virginia.
An attorney for Sriracha previously told The Times that the company aimed to remain a prominent force in the hot sauce game.
"The City Council is determined to assert its authority regardless of the status of the odor remediation efforts," John Tate, a lawyer for Sriracha, stated.
The Irwindale Council also attempted to institute a second public nuisance guideline - this would allow members to implement new rule if the company did not do so on its own.
Some of the 30 residents living in the vicinity of the plant also said the stench of fresh chiles being ground at the factory gave them headaches. City officials requested a judge shut down the plant, which currently harvests chile peppers, according to The Times.
South Coast Air Quality Management suggested Huy Fong Foods install carbon filters to ease the smell - a measure the company has taken in the past.
