Why delay a recommendation from the NS Planning Board?
I’ll state up front that I am personally opposed to the proposed zoning overly by the quarry.
I attended the meeting of the NS Planning Bord on Thursday April 10th with intention of bringing up a few concerns about the operation of the quarry off of Pound Hill Road and the prosed zoning overlay to allow continued mining by Material Sand and Stone. However, I learned upon arrival the subject was removed from the agenda at the request of the applicant.
Although I was slightly frustrated after having prepared to offer some thoughts, one good thing that happened was that I got to meet Mr. Palardy, chairman of the planning board, before the meeting started. We discussed the sudden change in the agenda, and he offered to at least check with the other members that I might have an opportunity to ask questions and follow up questions his own board asked Mr. Landry, attorney for the applicant, at the February 13th meeting. I found Mr. Palardy to be friendly and approachable while maintaining a professional distance.
I was able to ask questions and follow up Dr. Roberts’ question of taxes and Mr. Palardy’s own questions pertaining to quarry hours of operation and the actual number of trucks using the road each day. Mr. Landry had already promised to obtain answers to these questions at the February meeting.
I mentioned Jason Richer sent me a video from that very morning with sounds coming from the quarry time stamped at 5:51 a.m. Mr. Carullo responded to the board, saying Mr. Landry had already stated that the quarry would not be starting early and if they did he would remind them not to.
Mr. Carullo also stated he wrote down the questions and will forward them to the quarry. There was not much opportunity for discussion, and now the planning board has postponed any recommendation on the favorability of the zoning overlay as compared to the NS comprehensive plan until at least their meeting in June.
Mr. Igliozzi, NS Town Solicitor, had previously clarified the task of the planning board regarding this issue at the February 13th meeting where he said their job is to compare this proposal with its fit to the comprehensive plan. The quarry has since on more than one occasion claimed that their grandfathered rights really preclude them from any comparison to the comprehensive plan.
Oops, we’re back to grandfathered rights, which gets back to a previous question made to NS Town Council – whether those grandfathered rights include the right to merge property that was purchased by the Pezza family after the NS zoning moratorium was put in place in 1979. If there is not a distinction, what stops them from purchasing additional parcels in the future? If you think the answer lies with stipulations attached to the proposed zoning overlay, then you aren’t looking at the history of this quarry’s performance when it comes to mining or building structures without a permit. These actions apply not only to North Smithfield operations, but also previously by the same company in the town of Johnston.
Even though the quarry disavows any need for adherence to the comprehensive plan, I can understand why TC would still ask the planning board for a recommendation comparing the zoning overlay to the comprehensive plan. Here’s where it gets interesting. Does the planning board already have enough information to decide whether to make that recommendation? It seems to me that Jeff Porter, one of their own members, made it pretty clear that this overlay proposal fails to meet more sections of the comprehensive plan than it claims to benefit. On top of that the claims from Mr. Landry that portions of the overlay proposal fit nicely with the comprehensive plan seem mostly based on economic development and the expectation or hope from the original comprehensive planners that some newly allowed businesses might provide a higher proportion of our town tax revenue. When I personally tried to look up taxes I could find no evidence to support this claim. Dr. Roberts asked about taxes at the February 13th meeting and how this quarry is to be considered an asset to North Smithfield. I also brought up those questions on Thursday.
Here is my contention: Every day that passes the quarry continues mining without oversight. If the planning board already has enough information to make a judgment on the validity of these zoning overlay proposal based on its fit to the comprehensive plan, then why delay further? I believe they should take their vote and decide upon their recommendation. At least then the focus can go back to TC where administrative authority of this proposal still needs to be sorted through.
Respectfully submitted,
Richard Grubb
Follett Street
Thank you Richard for speaking up and out and to all the other townspeople that do not support this expansion. This is history repeating itself over and over again. Certain businesses in town have been purposefully exempt from compliance with town ordinances and it has to stop. Vote no! What difference will it make? More litigation? So what? Stop capitulating to these bullies! If it doesn’t comport to the comprehensive plan it does not pass muster and Mr. Carullo should start enforcing our ordinances with fines, rather than sitting on his hands.
What’s going on with the Road Use Permit they received last year? It was good for one year and expired almost a month ago. Pound Hill and PIne Hill have 35K lb weight limits and every dump truck going to and fro is in violation.
The road use permit application requires the TC’s approval and the administrators signature.
The Council was asked about this and they had no answer…
Not EVERY truck is over the 35K restriction. The truck I use to go in there and haul out has a GVW of 30K so I would suggest you do a little more research be for making that statement!
Out of the whole article that small portion of a comment is an interesting part for you to focus. What is your opinion on the rights of the quarry to grandfather parcels that they purchased after the mining moratorium? I believe that right, or whack thereof, is the key to the whole argument.
Whack apparently was a Freudian artificial ignorance text slip. I meant lack.
My opinion does not matter. What ever I say will just fall on deaf ears. What ever my thoughts are, you people are out in full force to put this company OUT of business. As far as my comment above. Some people seem to think they KNOW everything, which is simply no true!
I appreciate your comment. I want you to know my personal goal is not to put the quarry out of business. I do think there should be some penalty for their past behavior in ignoring Town ordinances, not building with permits and basically doing whatever they wanted despite being fully aware they were against zoning. Their own argument is they have grandfathered rights to the quarry. I have challenged whether they have these rights on the property which they purchased after the mining moratorium was put in place. No one seems to care as they continue mining that property. They were told by the courts to seek a solution with zoning and the town of North Smithfield. The solution they are seeking is to not follow up with zoning as they were instructed but rather do an end around through planning which I have to assume they thought would be an easier route to their personal success. Unfortunately they neglected to realize that planning must compare their proposal to the comprehensive plan. The comprehensive plan does not support their proposal, so now they are possibly planning to send an expert to the planning board to review the comprehensive plan. This is so typical of the way they act. Rather than addressing the actual issue they start little side fires all around which keep people occupied but in the end they’re not make any progress. My position is now is the time to control them and it would be a sad thing if not allowing them to do what is against the zoning ordinance would put them out of business but they kind of created the mess for themselves. It is time to take a stand especially since the courts have ruled in our favor. I would be pleased to discuss this with you in any length you would desire although I would prefer to know who you are. I have a page devoted on Facebook to North Smithfield politics. Perhaps you may be familiar with it. Sandra Hall I don’t know if I’ve crossed the line plugging my page but if so please feel free to edit that last sentence. Thanks
I am aware of you Facebook page. I have commented on that page in my real name. I however I will not do it again due to the fact I am in support of that business and was given a hard time over that. Put I cannot stand Mr. Know it all on the corner. You know the guy with all the cameras that harass all the truckers! That’s all I can say at the moment because if I were to really say what I am thinking it would never get posted!