A Shelton propane company wants to install a bigger storage tank on its property on Riverdale Avenue.
The proposal, from Pioneer Gas & Appliance Co. Inc, is to replace a 18,000-gallon propane tank with a 30,000-gallon propane tank.
But residents in the neighborhood are opposing the plans, citing safety and environmental concerns, as well as a propane truck fire at the site last spring.
One city alderman, Eric McPherson, is even calling for the removal of the existing tank.
Background
Pioneer owner William Papale, Jr. says the upgrade will expand his company’s storage capabilities, but otherwise change nothing about the way he has operated at the site since 2005.
In addition to the storage tank, Pioneer plans to continue parking some trucks at the site overnight, and store some smaller, residential propane tanks at the property.
He says Pioneer will follow fire safety guidelines and flood zone restrictions at the site.
The plans were filed with the Shelton Planning and Zoning Office this month, and the Planning and Zoning Commission will discuss it at the June 14 meeting.
Because the use is permitted in the industrial zone, there won’t be any public hearing on the proposal, according to Planning and Zoning Administrator Rick Schultz.
The existing tank was installed without city zoning permits, Schultz said.
Once it was brought to the city’s attention recently, the Inland Wetlands Commission issued an after-the-fact approval, Schultz said.
The Planning and Zoning Commission hasn’t approved the existing propane tank yet, Schultz said, because the application for the larger tank was filed soon after the city found out about the existing tank.
The city’s fire marshal has already signed off on the new plans, and deemed the propane tank safe, Schultz said.
Opposition
Residents on Hull Street and Brewster Lane, and Alderman McPherson, have written letters to the commission opposing the application.
About 30 residents in the area signed a petition against the proposal.
Among the concerns:
- the half-acre site is along the Housatonic River in the 100-year flood plain.
- there was a truck fire at the site last Spring.
- homes are located in the neighborhood.
- there are school buses parked on the lot adjacent to the site, and a diesel tank stored at the bus site.
Alderman Eric McPherson said he is also concerned that the existing tank was installed without city zoning approvals.
“I’m really opposed,” McPherson said. “It’s in a neighborhood. People live down there. I really don’t think it should be there. It should be in a more suitable area.”
Article continues after McPherson’s letter.
Eric McPherson Opposition Letters
Response
But Papale said several of the residents’ concerns are based on an earlier proposal, which has been changed.
He said the new plan follows fire safety and flood zone codes. And, he said, propane operations in general are safe.
“They have a number of regulations to follow to put in a facility like this,” Papale said. “You have to take certain precautions. One of them being in the flood plain, you have to have the tank strapped down, pour extra concrete on the straddles, run straps around them, to prevent flotation of the tank.”
Papale said Pioneer will do that, and plans to have tie-downs for smaller, empty residential propane tanks that will be stored at the site as well.
He said the propane tank is located more than 50 feet away from the school bus diesel tank, the National Fire Protection Association minimum.
“All codes will not only be met, but exceeded, to ensure safety,” Papale said. “That’s our number one concern.”
As to the fire, Papale said it was due to an electrical issue on one of his trucks, and had nothing to do with the propane stored at the site.
In March 2010, a motorist called 911 after spotting flames down near the propane tank storage site from Route 8.
Firefighters arrived and saw the cab of the propane truck engulfed in flames, firefighters said at the time. The fire was so intense, it damaged a nearby school bus, which was parked there overnight with other buses.
Firefighters were able to put out the fire before it reached the propane tank.
