The much-anticipated decision on whether Cemex can extend mining in the hills above Davenport was punted by county regulators Wednesday after the building materials giant and the city of Santa Cruz, California agreed to settle the issue on their own.

The two parties are at odds over how much a 17-acre expansion of a limestone quarry, needed to keep the company’s cement plant in Davenport stocked and running, would harm a nearby spring that provides drinking water to the city. The county Planning Commission was scheduled to weigh in on the matter this week but instead gave the two sides until Oct. 28 to resolve the matter before it imposed a decision.
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