Planning and Zoning Commission members will wait another month before deciding if a company can have a rock crushing operation near BJ’s Wholesale Club on Division Street.
The commission voted Tuesday to continue a public hearing on William Korolyshun’s application for a permit for rock crushing on the site that he owns.
The decision came after Korolyshun submitted new information Tuesday for his application, including erosion mitigation and dust control plans, a revised plan indicating less than 10,000 yards of material would be processed and that no more than 25 trucks per day would enter and leave the site.
The commission is scheduled to meet next on Aug. 18.
Click here to read our previous story on the proposal.
In asking for an extension of the hearing, the commission also wanted Korolyshun to provide more environmental information about the site, including information the presence of some contaminants below the southwest corner of the site, apparently left there by a previous business.
Korolyshun said the material does not pose any danger unless it is disturbed. The commission wanted an environmental recommendation on how deep he could dig without disturbing the materials.
Michael Joyce, the consultant city engineer, recommended that instead of giving Korolyshun a two-year permit as requested, the commission issue a six-month permit with the option to renew, if necessary.
“Given the volume of material, it’s not going to take two years,” Joyce said.
Several residents spoke during the public hearing, hoping that dust and erosion concerns would be taken care of, especially along the popular Derby Greenway/Derby Riverwalk, which extends nearly two miles from Main Street to Division Street.
“This is my place to enjoy nature,” Lucinda Ames said. “Twenty-five trucks a day sounds like a lot of trucks.”
Those sentiments were echoed by her daughter, Jenny, a reading teacher who worried about children near the trail and trucks driving by.
Elaine LaBella, director of land preservation for the Housatonic Valley Association, said she wanted more information, including the steps taken to limit the amount of sediment going into the Naugatuck River.
“It’s difficult to understand what the process will be until all of the required information is available,” LaBella said. “The city spent a lot of money [on the trail] and it’s a jewel of the Valley.”
