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Date: 11/27/2023
HADLEY — “You did what you said you were going to do,” Planning Board Chairman James Maksimoski told Steve Vaiano, owner of In the Green Gardens. “We really can’t ask for more than that, you’ve done a good job.”
Maksimoski was referring to a warning given to Vaiano at the Nov. 7 Planning Board meeting where the conditions at his landscaping design business located at 243 Russell St. were called into question. That was in response to Vaiano’s request for a special permit review to construct concrete based material bins
on the property.
“The place is a disaster,” Maksimoski said at the time, noting less than desirable conditions on the site due to construction materials being strewn about and the existence of a wide field of debris.
The Nov. 21 meeting told a different story regarding the condition of the property.
“You said in two weeks you’d get it cleaned up and you certainly did,” Maksimoski said. “Thank you.”
Vaiano admittedly told the board that it did get out of hand, but he likes a clean yard and now doesn’t believe there is room to store materials on the site.
Vaiano showed images to the board depicting the clearing work accomplished since the Nov. 7 meeting where Maksimoski warned him to remove debris from the property or face penalties including a possible shut down.
An image Vaiano said was taken that evening showed where debris had been removed and the company vehicles moved onto the lot and off the roadway which had been noted by the board at the previous meeting.
“We removed all the soil like we were asked by the Planning Board,” he said.
The images also showed areas adjacent to a neighbor’s property where drainage has been a concern due to the condition of a mutual retaining wall and Vaino’s property.
Vaiano informed the board that he had consulted with Northampton-based Berkshire Design Group regarding utilizing bin blocks in attention to the current drainage concerns addressed by property neighbors Sanderson and Zahradnik.
“Right now, as the company stands, we don’t own the property here, we’re just renting so for that it doesn’t make financial sense for us to implement the bin blocks,” he said.
Vaiano said that if he winds up owning the property in the future it would be something the compnay would be interested in doing but presently it would be seeking permission to continue the parking of the company vehicles on the site. He also told the board that there were no plans to bring large amounts of construction materials back to the property.
Planning Board member Michael Sarsynski offered praise for the clearing work Vaiano accomplished on the property since the previous meeting.
“I think he’s made a good faith effort in cleaning the place up,” he said. “That’s important.”
Member Joseph Zgrodnik inquired if and how Vaiano might deal with any issues concerning drainage onto neighboring properties.
Paul Zahradnik, owner of Hadley Park Plaza at 245 Russell St. had expressed concerns previously about debris runoff in his property’s catch basin as did Lisa Sanderson, who neighbors Vaiano’s property to the west.
“I don’t know if there was issues with the drainage on the site beforehand but if there is issues than we can definitely do work to do something on my end as well,” Vaiano said.
Board members speculated as to whether there were drainage issues created by Hastie Fence, the previous tenant on the property where In the Green Garden now operates.
“We suffered for 10 years with Hastie Fence,” Zahradnik said. “With all their noise and trucks and you know, it wasn’t good.”
Zahradik called the area a quiet neighborhood and said both his and Sanderson’s business were quiet but there was concern about the noise created by Vaiano’s operation.
“I think more work needs to be done,” Zahradnik said. “I don’t want to see my property damaged and I don’t want to see Lisa’s property damaged and I want to make sure the rest of the neighborhood feels comfortable with it, too.”
Maksimoski requested that Vaiano arrange for a drainage and grade study or review of the property and Planning Board Clerk William Dwyer suggested the discussions be continued and the information be reviewed by the Conservation Commission
The Planning Board agreed to review the conditions again at the meeting scheduled for Jan. 2, 2024.