Concrete Plant Appeals Oakmont Decision
By Rossilynne Skena, The Valley News-Dispatch, Tarentum, Pa.
Jul. 17–The long-running saga of building a concrete plant in Oakmont could be delayed again.
HHI Trucking & Supply, the company that got approval to build the plant along Dark Hollow Road after more than a year of delays, is appealing portions of its conditional use permit to Allegheny County Court.
Borough council delayed action on HHI’s application to build the plant several times after residents complained it would adversely affect their neighborhood. Anthony Folino, the trucking company owner, first applied to build the plant in April 2007. Council approved the permit — with 33 conditions — last month.
Folino filed a notice of land use appeal with Allegheny County Court on July 7.
At issue are some of those 33 conditions, which HHI contends are illegal.
Stacey Noble, one of HHI’s attorneys, said “some of the conditions were previously discussed (and) some were tacked on.”
The appeal states that HHI is only appealing conditions which impose “erroneous and unreasonable conditions to the borough’s otherwise proper approval of HHI’s conditional use application.”
“Basically though the borough approved the construction of the concrete plant … ,” Noble said, “they attached certain conditions which are not related to the health, safety and welfare of the community,” Noble said.
Neither Michael Federici, council president, nor borough solicitor Shawn Gallagher could not be reached for comment yesterday.
The conditions were meant to address concerns that residents presented to council.
Resident Lucy Herrington, 69, said she’s “terribly disappointed” with the approval.
“I’m afraid this dust is going to come up … and with my lung problems it just makes it harder for me to breathe,” Herrington said.
Herrington isa member of the Committee to Stop the Batch Plant which sent an e-mail Tuesday addressing “friends and neighbors.”
“It seems Mr. Folino wants to have his cake and eat it, too,” the e-mail states. “He alleges in his lawsuit that Council imposed unreasonable conditions on the operation of his batch plant, even though many of the conditions were previously recommended and agreed to by Folino himself. They are conditions that will protect Oakmonters from the hazardous and noxious effects of the batch plant.”
The Committee calls for Gallagher to “vigorously defend in court the conditions they imposed.”
HHI’s appeal lists a number of “errors of law” that the company alleges council committed.
Among those in the appeal are: requiring HHI to reimburse the borough for engineering, legal and other fees; limiting the operation of the plant to 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday; and limiting cement deliveries to the plant to once per week.
Noble said there is no date set for a court ruling.
Rossilynne Skena can be reached at rskena@tribweb.com or 724-226-4681.
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