New Lebanon Faces Second Lawsuit

by Philip Zema
In April, Howard Commander, the owner of the Lebanon Valley Speedway, filed a lawsuit against the Town. Recently, Robert Mittnight followed a similar path, publicly announcing his complaint against New Lebanon. He stated, in a brief presentation at the Town Board meeting on May 10, that the Town’s Zoning Enforcement Officer and ZBA apparently had no right to treat him as it did. He claims the ZBA unjustly put him through seven years of torment. During this span, he was arbitrarily and falsely accused of violating numerous zoning laws (e.g. running a truck terminal without a permit), fined, jailed (12 days for an unspecified violation) and pressured to comply with local zoning laws (e.g. getting a building permit for a pole barn). His chief claim was that, according to the NYS “Right to Farm” law, his property is considered farmland; because Robert Smith harvests crops on his land and Mittnight restores and sells antique farm equipment. Consequently, he feels that despite claims that he needed to comply with arduous and time consuming zoning laws, he was under no legal obligation to do so. He claimed that any grievances he suffered were unnecessary. The Town, however, has not been officially served, and the details regarding the potential lawsuit are still opaque.
An Apology
Councilman Bruce Baldwin claimed that the Town should issue a public apology to John Dax, the Chairman of the ZBA. At last month’s meeting, Dax was the subject of several criticisms made by the audience. Councilman Bruce Baldwin indicated that some of these complaints unfairly attacked Dax’s integrity. Several residents, including Commander, took issue with the ZBA’s decisions that the Lebanon Valley Speedway was considered a campground. Some of their comments, it was perceived, were found to be inappropriate, if not slanderous. Supervisor Meg Robertson, albeit sorry for what happened, denied that the Board needed to provide a public statement of apology.
Baldwin was irate with her position, claiming that if the Board admitted it was wrong, then it should at least issue a public statement of apology. In response, Robertson said that, while she was sorry for what happened, she did not feel a public apology was necessary because she did not want to infringe on one’s freedom of speech. She said that being insulted was sometimes part of being a public official. Dax was upset with her position, stating that the Town will likely lose many of its qualified officials unless they are fairly defended. Baldwin made a motion that the Board issue a public apology. To the chagrin of Baldwin, Dax, and several audience members, the motion was defeated, with Robertson, Allen Livermore and K.B. Chittenden voting against it.
Landfill Liability Looms
New Lebanon may be liable to pay a $1,482,455 landfill closure fee. Unless Columbia County is held legally responsible for closing the landfill off of Old Post Road, the bill, which will inevitably lead to a local tax increase, is on the Town. At last month’s Board meeting, Councilman Douglas Clark argued that the potential liability should be listed on the Supervisor’s report. Accordingly, Town Supervisor Margaret Robertson added the potential fee to this month’s report. She did so even though the Town is still not legally obligated to close the landfill.
Court Clerk Compensation
There was also a debate about whether Diane Reynolds-Brown, the Town Court’s Clerk, should be paid for work performed in 2009. Allegedly, last year’s Court Clerk failed to fulfill her duties, and Brown worked 150 hours in her absence. Justice Darcy Poppey claimed that Brown did an outstanding job and should be compensated for her work; signed time cards, she claimed, serve as proof of Brown’s efforts. Councilman Clark thought that Brown should have gone to the Board before taking on the other Clerk’s duties. Poppey argued that when the problem first arose, she brought the issue forward and that evidence of her action can be found in the minutes of previous Board meetings. The Board decided to discuss the issue further at a later time. Furthermore, because the Court is currently overwhelmed with work, Poppey requested the Town hire a deputy court clerk. The Board agreed to appropriate $2,000 to pay for a part-time deputy court clerk; this appropriation can be renewed if additional clerical assistance is required.
What Wetlands?
A letter by Joan Phelps was also presented to the Board. It concerned the recent flooding that has occurred alongside Rt. 20. Many properties are flooded, but the DEC will not permit anyone to fix the problem since the area is considered protected wetlands. Local residents, however, argued that the area has never been a wetland and the flooding has been recently caused by beaver dams and congested culverts. As one person put it, “It’s only a wetland because the state has refused to unblock the culverts, making the area a floodplain.” Councilman Clark has investigated the issue. He said the Town needs a nuisance beaver permit and that the Department of Transportation would likely provide assistance in unplugging the culverts. To expedite a solution, the Board decided to forward the letter to NYS Senator Stephen Saland, NYS Assemblyman Tim Gordon and the DEC.
Great Stone Barn
In recent years, there has been a movement to restore the Shaker stone farm building – formally known as the Great Stone Barn – located near Darrow School. The restoration effort has been spearheaded by the Shaker Museum and Library. The Great Stone Barn, which was once the largest barn in America, was destroyed by a fire in 1972; only its stone foundation remains. Restoring the historic building will cost an estimated $4.5m, with $1.95m needed just to stabilize it. At the meeting, it was announced that the Environmental Protection Fund recently awarded the Shaker Museum and Library $400k. Added to monies already raised this leaves the project merely $35k short of the amount needed for stabilization. The remaining money must be raised by November 1. The Museum is currently working with engineers to develop a more complete renovation plan.
Other News
It was announced that a barber shop will open in town. It will be located at what was formerly Gaspar’s barber shop. Councilman Baldwin, Councilman Livermore, Supervisor Robertson and members of Canaan’s Town Board formed an ambulance committee. The committee will interview companies interested in providing ambulance services to the community. Also, it was announced that on June 5, there will be a free hazardous waste collection day at the Greenport Highway Garage.