2013.11.04 CC Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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Hugo City Council Meeting Minutes for November 18, 2013 Page 6 of 12 hazardous waste was not contained in single discrete area. He observed construction debris, computer components, and appliance parts that were loaded in cars, and was told they were loading the cars to get rid of stuff on the site. There was solid waste mixed with the dirt on the site. A site plan was not provided to him. Preisler did not know how the fence came down, but stated it has been down about a year and it's a condition of the SUP that it is maintained. The gas tank storage is not in compliance. Stewart stated he was allowed in the SUP to have 500 tires on the site and there are 100 there at most. He admitted he misspoke when he said they were all gone. He is keeping the ones with the rims on and all open tires were gone. Snyder stated that the Council needs to make a decision based on facts. The City is constrained by rules and regulations as they exist, one being the Hazardous Waste Generators License needs to be kept intact for him to operate, and the City is obliged to enforce the rules. Stewart stated he had paid the fee for the license and submitted the paperwork. The inspection was done and they found there was not proper storage of hazardous waste because there was no cement slab. The concrete slab was now in building but Washington County has not come back out to re -inspect. The permit was revoked May 1St and he said he did have an updated site plan. Jim Taurinksas, Attorney at Law, stated they have had the SUP since 1984, and in 2000 the Council added conditions which changed it from nine to 35 conditions. In 2011, the City renewed the operator's license and things were good. Since then, Stewart has had health problems, and his client has not collected rent for the past year. His client has not been happy with the financial situation but there had been a good partnership with Mr. Horton and thinks this situation is due to the longevity. He decided to clean it up in 2010 and did get the license from the City. He agreed it was not a great looking place, but it was a salvage yard. There has been a SUP for the past 29 years, and the current situation was due to the last 16-18 months. He acknowledged there has been issues over the years but concluded that the resolutions were very severe. He said the City needs more than just the pictures, and a good plan would be to let Stewart or his client clean it up. It was unfair to revoke the SUP due to the present conditions. These were tough times and they were making an effort. Taurinkas asked that the City consider letting him do what he can do, continue the SUP and impose conditions on a temporary basis. The Council needed to look at all the factors. City Attorney Dave Snyder asked Mr. Taurinksas if he had anything to add to the claims of the Building Official and Mr. Stewart. Taurinksas stated that Preisler was making too many assumptions and they were not supportable by any evidence brought before the Council. A resident named Ron said he lived next to the yard for about 30 plus years and agreed it should be cleaned up, and said there was no comparison from 30 -plus years ago. There should be more documentation before making a decision; Dan Stewart was asking for help and Ron was confident it would get done. He agreed the yard could use more clean up; it was 80 % clean. There is no hazardous waste or gas that's spilled on the ground. He said the City should look into it deeper before acting. Dan's goal is to clean it up and he is finally asking for help from others. Mayor Weidt closed the revocation hearing.