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Date: 11/14/2023
HADLEY — “The place is a disaster.” The comment from Planning Board Chair James Maksimoski as he and other members took a local business owner to task over the condition of their Russell Street property during the Nov. 7 meeting.
The discussion came during a Planning Board review of a special permit application from Steve Vainao, the proprietor of In the Green Gardens, a landscaping design business located at 243 Russell St.
Vainao requested a site plan revision, seeking permission to add concrete based bulk material bins across the back side of the property lot to hold building materials used in their work.
“Ninety-nine percent of our work is done at our customers’ houses,” Vainao told the board.
Questions from the board included where the company’s vehicles would be parked regularly on the property, what equipment was on site and the condition of the existing fence along the property lines.
The size of the concrete blocks to be used to construct the proposed bins and their proximity to the back of the property was also called into question by members of the board.
Dominating the discussion during was the current condition of the property due to what the board described as excessive debris resulting from the storage of building materials on site and the potential issues with drainage that could impact neighboring businesses adjacent to the property.
“What about all the debris that’s on the site today?” Maksimoski. “You’ve got big boulders and piles of dirt and all kinds of stuff there.”
Vainao, who said he leases and does not own the property where his business is located agreed to have the portions of a collapsed fence repaired and the debris in question removed.
Maksimoski questioned the amount of dirt and construction debris that is on the property at present as he said what Vainao was telling the board did not appear consistent with what was visible to them.
“Mr. Vainao, can you explain what’s going on there today because what you’re presenting and what you’re doing don’t match,” he said.
Vainao said he was working to remove the debris and unnecessary material while also attempting to put a plan together in order to go before the board.
Maksimoski warned Vainao that if the yard was not cleaned up, the building inspector or zoning enforcement officer may be directed to issue a cease-and-desist order.
“I hate to be mean; I’m just trying to be straight out honest,” Maksimoski said. “We’re not going to fool around here.”
Board of Health Inspector Ben Lipham informed the board that he had investigated a complaint that the property was being used as a solid waste site, which would require a permit.
“It did appear, based on appearances that the site is being used for unwanted or discarded solid waste from a commercial activity,” he said.
Kayla Loubriel with the town Conservation Commission also asked to be copied on the forthcoming site plans in order to measure any impact on neighboring wetlands.
Lisa Sanderson who neighbors Vainao’s property to the west, expressed concern about weeds and dirt from the debris piles which she said run 20 feet high are in close proximately to the drains and change the level of Vainao’s side of the fence.
“I have a drainage system, everything goes into my catch basin,” she said. “Where is his water flow going?”
Paul Zaradnick, owner of Hadley Park Plaza at 245 Russell St. also expressed concern about debris runoff in his property’s catch basin.
“If he [Vainao] is going to continue to go forward with this should include a storm water drainage system that can contain all the runoff that comes off of his site,” he said.
Clerk William Dwyer produced a Google Earth image of the property from 2018 depicting the property from overhead.
Vainao said the image depicts two storage bins on the back of the property similar to what he is requesting.
“There’s so much junk on the property right now, we can’t even tell where the grades are.” Maksimoski said.
Dwyer indicated that the prior tenants of the property had not sought approval from the town for the placement of bins and it was current staff that discovered them when the property changed occupants.
“It’s not that we’re picking on you,” Dwyer said to Vainao.” It’s that there’s a new sheriff in town and there has been for a little while, so we’re trying to attend to these things more effectively.”
The board suggested, based upon the new information, present condition of the property and neighborhood concerns, that a professionally designed drainage plan was in order.
A more recent image from 2021 still depicted the unauthorized storage bins and discarded materials.
“That’s tight,” Dwyer said. “That’s something OSHA [The Occupational Safety and Health Administration] would be interested in.”
The hearing was continued to Nov. 21 with the intention that debris on the site be removed during that time, a meeting be conducted with the Conservation Commission and pursuit of a drainage plan be initiated.
“If you are not cleaned up,” Maksimoski told Vainao. “Well, the consequences might not be desirable.”