A scrap metal recycling company that wanted to move is aborting its plans.

TJN Enterprises had an option to buy 32 acres of land north of Sioux Falls Regional Airport, but that option is being dropped, TJN officer Dave Bernstein said.

The company also has withdrawn an application with the city for a conditional-use permit at that site. The firm spent several months trying to work through the process of relocating to 1704 W. 60th St. N.

Neighboring landowners hired a lawyer to fight the plan, and city officials expressed doubts.

Bernstein said TJN still needs to relocate from its 5-acre site in western Sioux Falls. TJN also has scrap yards in Watertown and Yankton, as well as in Worthington, Minn., and Estherville, Spencer and Sioux City, Iowa.

"We want to stay in Sioux Falls," Bernstein said. "We need to stay in Sioux Falls, and we need to expand."

But the company is somewhat constrained. It needs access to good roads and railroads.

Matthew Bock, a lawyer representing neighboring landowners, filed a notice of appeal with the city and the state seeking to define the operation as a junkyard rather than a recycling operation.

Landowners in the area didn't think it was a good fit for what's projected to see significant economic development, Bock said.

"That's going to be one of the primary east-west corridors," Bock said.

City officials also were skeptical about the site. It's over the aquifer that provides the city with a significant amount of water, as well as near the inlet from which the city takes water from the Big Sioux River.

TJN doesn't use chemicals in its operation, but water quality issues still were a concern.

Because of water and its location to the airport, Councilor Pat Costello was among those who thought a better site could be found. He said TJN provides a valuable service to the city and it should be congratulated for needing to expand.

"We certainly want to see them relocate in Sioux Falls or near Sioux Falls," he said. "But we need it in an appropriate location."