Milford Recycling Center Creates Human & Animal Wellfare Concerns

About a year ago a Corporation well known for their multiple violations and questionable shady work/business tried to get zoning approval to build a new dump and recycling facility at 990 Naugatuck AVE. Milford Ct. This proposed facility would be accessed from both ends of Naugatuck ave and also by water via the Housatonic river. They would be receiving upwards of 1,000 TONS! of trash and garbage PER DAY! from surrounding cities such as Bridgeport,Stratford,Orange,Derby, Shelton ect. and thanks to the support of the community we were able to shut down their attempts of turning our beautiful neighborhood into another dumping ground.

However they have come back and re-filed for approval under a "New" ownership claim even though they were told NO once before. Since that time the same trucks and dumpsters, with the same Company name, (to this day 5/16/2011) have been making their rounds at 1, 2,3, & 4AM.  We believe they are illegally dumping "who knows what" in the secrecy of the night.

Now as many of you know, or may not know, Naugatuck Ave. is a neighborhood road that runs from I-95 to Exit 36. It also goes all the way to the shores of Walnut beach of which is filled with families many of whom have small children and NO sidewalk. Now this alleged "NEW OWNER" wants to have Dump trucks filled with tons of trash come barreling down YOUR kids neighborhood to dump other peoples trash in "YOUR BACKYARDS!!!"

Other serious concerns will include LESS traffic safety in our neighborhood and excessive road wear including pot holes and pavement warping characteristic of heavy trucks. Its bad enough there are no sidewalks on Naugatuck ave and that the LAWS PROHIBITING tractor trailers and heavy trucking to use Naugatuck Ave. are broken daily, but now we have to worry about the safety of our children, pets and ourselves when walking down the street even more then before.

Property values will be negatively impacted. (Realtors warned us as to the difficulty of selling homes next to a dump)

Other well known hardships of living next to a dump, include disease carried by Mice, Rats, Raccoons, Possum and plenty of Seagulls who pick up and carry germ laden garbage around the surrounding residential areas and yards where children play.

For those who have had the experience of visiting the local dump (CRRE Transfer Station) have heard the noise and commotion from only the few tractors and compactors. Imagine Big Dump trucks coming down YOUR street all day hauling trash 100's of times our local volume. Also lets not forget the added odor induced hardship that already engulfs the EXISTING City Dump.

Recently our taxes have just started to repair Naugatuck Ave's pavement after years of neglect. By allowing more than 1,000 TONS of trash to be hauled up and down our local neighborhood streets local taxpayers will be unwillingly subsidizing the excessive road wear and repair on behalf of an objectionable Corporation. Overweight and heavy trucks rapidly deteriorate local roads at three times the normal pace of a regular community road. (Thats why they are currently being repaired again.)

ACCESS TO THE HOUSATONIC RIVER will be impeded and its recreational use will be restricted. This is because, in that area, there is only ONE access point to the Housatonic River for Milford CT. Years ago our city had Two access points, one was behind the Caswell Cove complex but that area is now blocked by Cement poles that Caswell Cove installed.  Their permit has stopped Milford Tax Payers from using common CITY PROPERTY IN THE WAY THEY WERE ONCE ACCUSTOMED.) The poles remain, under the objections of the local residents who are cut us off from their own river.

The only other remaining access point our city has left is the boat launch under the I95 bridge that has been closed for the last 2 years or more. This closing is due to continuous highway repairs. The bridge will "later reopen" once those "repairs" have been completed.

The caveat of a dump approval will render the final recreational access point to the Housatonic River "off limits." The ramp will no longer be usable because the site business plan and their admission calls for frequent barges delivering ecologically hazardous waste up and down our local river.  As a final point, I would also mention that fisherman have expressed objection due to the fact that large trash filled barges interfere with water crafts and habitats in the river.They have cited many well known studies on how plastic bottles, broken glass, and rusty metals present severe hazards to aquatic wildlife.

Document Edited by Rocco Frank and obtained from the 101 members at the Facebook Group "No Dump at 900 Naugatuck Ave Milford CT!!!"

More Negative Income Properties Arriving In Milford

Nothing threatens schools and education more than Negative Income Properties. NIP's unlike financially irresponsible politicians cannot be voted out of office on election day. NIP's consume more taxes and tax dollars than can ever be reasonably recouped by taxation. The following note that arrived to me today has all the hallmarks of a classic tax burden to the people of Milford. The e-mail reads as follows:

"The appeal to prevent the development of apartments on Prospect St. has failed after 4 years in court. The current owners have posted a Notice of Demolition on 25 Prospect St., the little brown house, after 4 years of neglect. It appears the developer will build their first proposal of 3 apartment buildings with minimum setbacks against the cemetery property and the railroad property. 84 apartments. 97 cars. "

This type of development will result in new Milford residents that will potentially have one or more kids in our schools. The cost of educating those kids $12,500.00 each... the taxes they pay perhaps 4, or $5,000.00 per unit creating an additional tax burden on the people of Milford, and the kids we need to educate here. Truly sad and tragic.

Milford Zoners Alter Trash Plant Regulation

The Planning and Zoning Board this week approved a regulation change that bans recycling plants and trash-hauling operations in one of the city’s heavy industrial zones.

The change to the Housatonic Design District, a large swath of land along the Housatonic River north of Interstate 95, received unanimous support from the PZB, but received heavy criticism from business interests.

The change, which goes into effect July 22, bans all “trash hauling, solid waste processing, construction and demolition debris storage and processing, recycling plants and volume-reduction facilities” in the district.

The banned uses, however, are allowed if they are “accessory to a permitted principal use.”

With the change, existing transfer stations and recycling centers are grandfathered in by the old regulations and can continue operations. They are, however, considered a “non-conforming use” and cannot expand the operations.

Critics contended at a public hearing that the change would alter the character of the district, hurt the city financially and amount to illegal spot zoning and illegal taking.

But City Planner David Sulkis said a language change to the original proposal tightened the regulation and should have eliminated “99 percent” of the concerns.

“It’s going to basically protect the neighborhoods surrounding this zone from heavy traffic typically generated from the waste-hauling industry,” Sulkis said. He said the regulation would also protect the nearby Housatonic River from possible environmental damage.

Sulkis said the change passed Tuesday night with little discussion.

“We heard some forceful objections to this regulation change at the public hearing, many of which were from businesses that will not be impacted,” PZB Chairwoman Jeanne Cervin said. “When the wording was tightened up, it was clear that the power company, Iroquois Gas, Gas Equipment Engineering Corp. and, of course, the city transfer station and the sewer treatment plant, which are not subject to our regulations, will not be impacted.”

James Tinley ORIGINAL STORY CLICK HERE

Cell Phone Tower Stirs Milford's North End

Many city residents have been concerned with the ambitions of Cellco Partnership. This company has big ambitions, to be exact their ambitions are about 140 Feet Tall and made of steel. They originally wanted to place this giant cell tower at the YMCA in the North end of town, but after lots of opposition from neighbors who feared Electromagnetism, decreased property values and unsightly views decided to scrap the idea and head for the park.

Eisenhower Park is now the new site Cellco proposed for the construction of this cell phone tower. This however did not satisfy its opponents, the battle will continue at city hall where a platoon of protesters led by Tina Laychak will take on the sharp speaking suits at Robinson & Cole, the Hartford-based law firm representing Cellco.

The purpose of this tower is somewhat of an enigma, a Verizon customer on North Street said he had "good reception with Verizon. No dropped calls. Don't have to go outside to make calls like Cingular, which also always dropped calls or I wouldn't get calls all together. Never had that problem with Verizon, their service is a lot better."

Personally I have made calls from both Eisenhower Park and the YMCA on my Sprint network and my reception is good and the phone always works. Perhaps there is more to this than just reception or putting up a pole certainly we will find out at the public hearing July 1 at 7 p.m. in the City Hall auditorium.

Another issue is the construction of a shed approximately 30 feet by 20 feet that will house additional equipment, and this is also an issue requiring debate as to its construction look and design. Cellco has even gone so far as to offer the city of Milford an undisclosed amount of money for use of its land at Eisenhower Park, but as of yet no deal has been made.

Some cities around the state have opted to resolve these issues through the use of tall buildings and churches with high steeples who are happy to accommodate cell phone equipment high up on their rooftops or in their bell towers and steeples. The cell phone companies pay these organizations for use of their space and cell companies have made a matchmaking business of it with willing participants.

Perhaps the solution to this problem is a nearby church, or tall building that would like to volunteer its steeple. Personally I am not really certain about what churches would work but certainly we should all agree that it would be much more pleasant than a 140 foot pole. We will anxiously wait and see what happens at city hall next month.