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12/04/2018 03:41 PMWith the expected withdrawal of a lawsuit over a controversial proposal to build a recycling plant at 30 Old Post Road, the owners of the property are now considering new options for the site. On Nov. 13, Old Post Realty representatives met with the Economic Development Commission (EDC) to discuss alternative uses for the property.
According to an email from EDC Clerk Wendy McDermott, Old Post Realty owners Douglas and Kenneth Dobriner, consultant Rick Kowaleski, and business manager Joann Wylie met with the volunteer board.
Douglas Dobriner told the Harbor News the developers are looking forward to finding a new use for the property and working with the town.
“Once we find a use for the property, we’ll make it public,” Dobriner said.
EDC Chair John Allen said the developers are “looking for a reset” on the property, and are looking to explore other opportunities for the site.
According to Allen, the commission discussed the kinds of projects that the town could be interested in seeing in that space, including the possibility of a recreational center such as an ice-skating rink. Allen said the town has been interested for years in adding an ice rink to town, notably at the former Unilever property.
Allen called the actions by the developers “a good faith effort” to work with the town. Allen said the pending litigation was not discussed and it appeared the developers were ready to move on from pursuing a waste storage site.
Allen stressed that the meeting was just an introduction between the town and owners, and that no formal plans have been made. Allen said that follow-up meetings will be planned with the developers.
“The EDC wants to make sure whatever comes of the property is successful for them, too,” Allen said.
During the spring 2018, an application by Shoreline Rail & Recycling (SRR) to build a waste recycling plant drew intense public opposition. The proposed facility would have been 94,500 square feet and located at the site of a former Unilever warehouse that collapsed in a 2013 snowstorm. According to George Andrews of Louriero Engineering Associates, a company that had represented SRR in front of the Inland Wetlands Commission (IWC), the proposed facility would have been for storing waste composed of “construction and demolition debris.”
SRR withdrew its application in May, after several member of the IWC indicated they were leaning toward voting “No” on the application at the commission’s next meeting. In June, SRR submitted a new application before the IWC, only to once again withdraw the application in early August, after the Planning & Zoning Commission (PZC) passed a zoning amendment that would prohibit the type of use that the proposed facility would have engaged in. Soon after, Old Post Realty challenged the PZC amendment in State Superior Court in Middletown.
In October, Old Post Realty filed a motion to withdraw its appeal; should the withdrawal be approved by a judge as anticipated on Monday, Dec. 10, the case will be over.
At three public hearings on the proposal in the spring, no member of the public spoke in favor of the application, while dozens spoke against the proposal. Members of the public expressed concerns about the potential contamination to wetlands on the property, safety concerns, and health issues associated with the debris that could be processed at the site.