Rotterdam officials find nothing to support claims of erosion
Once again, Marc Della Villa’s dirt track has gotten the green light from Rotterdam officials as soil erosion claims were struck down as invalid.
Andrew Brick, an attorney representing town property owners, presented the Rotterdam Town Board with an argument on March 9 that extensive soil erosion had taken place on the dirt track owned by Marc Della Villa, which is used by dirt bike and ATV riders. The town followed through with Brick’s request to investigate the property for soil erosion and sediment control requirements, but town officials didn’t find anything to support the claims.
`They were not violating any laws as far as the town is concerned, so it is not something we can step into,` said Supervisor Frank Del Gallo. `It is a real tough situation there. They probably could still come to an agreement (with residents).`
Del Gallo said Public Works Coordinator Michael Griesemer and Code Enforcement Officer Mickey Maher investigated the property. Calls to Griesemer and Maher were not returned.
Della Villa, owner of the light industrial zoned property at Maple Street and Wedgewood Heights, said he found out about the decision after reading a local news report, but hadn’t been informed by the town directly as of Tuesday, April 26.
`[Del Gallo] told me that if you are within your rights that would be the end of it. He said it would be a fair decision. That was all he had ever told me,` said Della Villa.
Brick said there was a soil disturbance at the site and the town had failed to enforce the zoning code. To make his argument, he presented a satellite photo of the area he said was from 2010 and another dated 2009. In the 2010 photo, he said there was a filling truck on the property and piles of dirt too. Airborne soil leaving the property was cited as a disturbance by neighboring residents.
Calls to Brick for comment on the town’s decision were not returned.
Del Gallo said Brick incorrectly presented the pictures and they were not from the labeled years. One picture labeled 2009 appeared to have more vegetation than the picture labeled 2010.
`The pictures were like from 2006, where it looked like the moon,` said Del Gallo. `They got the pictures backwards, the ones with more grass on them was more recent.`
Della Villa said this is just another battle in the ongoing struggle with neighboring residents who don’t like the dirt bikes near their homes.
`The people on the board who are not looking at this properly just remind them that this is light industrial property. I asked the residents, ‘Is this about the dirt bikes or the noise?’` said Della Villa. `They have made it quite clear the noise is what has bothered them.`
Marc Della Villa’s son, Jessie, said dirt bike riders have only used the property for the past three years. According to Jessie, the photo presented by Brick showed a trailer that hasn’t been on the property in more than six years.
`Once they get to a certain dead end they start to try to pursue something else. We are not doing anything wrong. The day you can’t ride a dirt bike on your land, what can you do on your land?` asked Jessie Della Villa. `It is getting out of hand it is just to the point that if a neighbor doesn’t like something you do, you can’t do it anymore.“
