Neighbors Alarmed By Quarry Management Proposal
Neighbors expect damages from zoning changes and lot consolidation proposed by Quarry Management in Deerpark, as has already happened.
By David Ofshinsky
Deerpark. Quarry Management brought its controversial project on Route 6 before the Deerpark Planning Board at their January 8 meeting. They presented a pre-application for lot consolidation and zoning changes.
John Fuller, representing Quarry Management as project engineer, began by acknowledging some of the issues with the five-year-old project. “There have been a number of complaints, and the Town Board is involved. They have had to come into compliance with DEC twice within the past year,” he said.
Fuller said that Quarry Management wants to consolidate all the lots it now owns. They initially purchased 2 lots on U.S. Rt. 6 from Deerpark Councilmember Arthur Trovei in 2020. Subsequently they have acquired 3 adjacent residential lots below on Lime Kiln Rd.
Fuller said that Quarry Management wants to have all the lots as one parcel and have the zoning changed to IB, Interchange Business, the zoning for the Rt. 6 lots.
Fuller said the lots on Lime Kiln Rd. would remain “residential.” One has a house on it, which will stay, another lot would be suitable for residential use, and the other lot would be used for the project. He said that the lot is needed to finalize the grading to stabilize the “significant amount of fill” that has been brought in.
Town Board and Planning Board Attorney Glen Plotsky noted that if the lot line changes are approved, the zoning change is automatic.
When contacted about the project, Deerpark Town Supervisor Gary Spears said that “the Town Board has addressed complaints and worked with the DEC on violations.”
The initial pre-application for the project was presented to the Planning Board at its November 14, 2018 meeting. The minutes note that the site would be used as a transportation hub and to stockpile materials. Some “small changes and some grading” would be needed, Fuller said at the time.
On the western end, what exists now is an enormous mountain of soil and stone that towers above US Rt. 6. It is close in height to the westbound lanes of I-84. This “mountain” also appears to spill down onto one of the Lime Kiln Rd. properties.
At the eastern end, a forty foot high fill embankment was compacted to provide a storage yard for materials, trucks and equipment at the same height as the other Rt. 6 lot. Its construction had a severe negative impact on an adjacent property owner.
Lime Kiln Rd. residents have expressed opposition to the proposal. They say the site is an eyesore and complain about quality of life issues and the loss of property values. Given the project’s history, they have little confidence that what they are now being told is the truth. They expect that changing the zoning lets Quarry Management ignore problems instead of correcting them and allows them to continue to do whatever they want.
Jon Muita’s property borders the project, and he has been adversely affected by it. Trees on his property were cut down, debris was scattered on his property, and seepage from the project turned a section of his property into a swamp.
Town officials were unresponsive when Miuta tried to contact them about damages. “I tried contacting Fusco, the town building inspector, over a dozen times during the past year. He has never once responded to me,” Miuta said, noting that publicity about the problems appears to have helped get some of the issues resolved.
However, issues with possible property line encroachments and inadequate property line setbacks with his property have not been addressed. Muita was told last year that a survey would be done, but that hasn’t happened
“That used to be a beautiful, wooded hillside,” he said recently, pointing to the huge rockpile that is there now. “Look at it. The beauty was stolen from me. It will never be replaced. Now they want to change zoning instead of fixing the mess. Is this the best they can do for the town?”
Resident John Artis was incredulous about the latest news on the project. “A few months ago, I was doing some work on my property and the Town Highway Supervisor shows up with a stop work order for being too close to the road. How can they let Quarry Management destroy the neighborhood for years and then jump on me? Now they want to change the zoning instead of doing repairs. Maybe I should get the law changed so I can do what I want. It’s time to clean things up and do what’s right for the residents of Lime Kiln Rd.”
Questions about the project remain. On October 1 and October 21 of last year, I emailed Alfred Fusco, CEO of Fusco Engineering, the firm contracted by Deerpark to oversee building and zoning matters. I requested information on the approved use of the site, height restrictions on the mountains of dirt and their ability to withstand severe weather events, zoning issues, and possible property line issues with Miuta’s property.
The same questions were emailed to Deerpark Councilmember Arthur Trovei. He was also asked if he sees a project like this as what’s best for the Town. Trovei was the owner of the property, with its sale to Quarry Management contingent on Planning Board approval. Consequently, he was a party to the Planning Board submission. He was represented by Glen Plotsky, who was also the Town and Planning Board attorney at the time, typically considered an ethically questionable intersection of responsibilities.
Neither Fusco nor Trovei have responded to emailed questions.
Plotsky said at the meeting that if the planning board approves the lot consolidation, zoning change would be automatic. Quarry Management must do a full application to the Planning Board to request the changes. The issue may come before the planning board again in a month. No timeframe was mentioned at the meeting.
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It appears precautions for erosion have taken place, I hope the new owners continue to work with local agencies and residents to mitigate the problems. This often occurs at the interface of industrial /commercial properties and residential areas. When Meloi Lumber closed, I'm sure rateables from the property also diminished. Perhaps a higher tax rate on such an operation could offset Deerpark costs of operations. Why aren't more folks upset with the Shen Fung folks dumping raw sewage into the Neversink?