Monday, Dawson filed a statement of claim with the Yukon territorial court against miner Darrell Carey.
The town alleges Carey made the roadway unsafe by digging too closely to the Dome Road and that Carey broke several conditions of his mining permits, said the city in its statement of claim.
He excavated within 15 metres of the road’s median - a requirement put in place by the Yukon’s mining inspector in May - as well as clearing vegetation and gravel near the road and creating unsafe, steep slopes along the curb.
Carey’s excavations “pose significant hazards to, and unreasonably interfere with, the integrity of the Dome Road,” said the statement of claim.
The town is seeking an immediate end to Carey’s digging, as well as court orders to prevent more excavations that could endanger public safety.
In April the city filed a stop-work order against Carey after he cleared trees and brush from along Dome Road. Carey had only subsurface rights to the land and had no city permits to clear any trees, said the city at the time.
Carey ignored the stop-work order and continued to clear trees from the road. That led the town to threaten to file a court injunction against Carey, which was never filed.
Neither the city’s chief administrative officer or Mayor Peter Jenkins were available for comment on the issue before press time.