Save Calabogie News

Wow, this is all a bit much. I can’t believe our misery in Big Beaver is repeating itself in your community. A couple of questions I now have for you.

1) Where does the project stand in terms of your community planning and permitting process? Does your community have Zoning? This is very important for me to know to help you avoid our problems. The differences between Pennsylvania and Canadian governmental processes may slow us down just a bit, but we can work around those issues, I’m sure. Here are some examples of the various stages Beaver Run had to go through to be permitted to operate:

(a). The Beaver Run project did not exactly fit our zoning for the parcel they chose to purchase. Therefore, they had to apply before our Zoning Hearing Board for a special exception. The property was zoned mostly R-2 (Suburban Residential) with a small portion of it R-1 and a small portion SC (Special Conservation). Our Zoning Hearing Board was responsible for determining whether or not the proposed use was eligible for the grant of Special Exception for the R-1 and R-2 positions, based on the testimony presented by the track owners. That testimony, presented during their “courting stage” claimed that the proposed use would be recreational and educational (if you can believe that one!) rather than commercial. We do have an ongoing problem in Big Beaver in interpreting what is the definition of “recreational” vs. “commercial”, i.e. is a bowling alley both recreational and commercial, is a movie theatre either recreational or commercial… blah, blah, blah. The Special Exception was granted with specific conditions to apply to the operation of the facility, such as:

(b). Additionally, the track owners had to appear before Borough Council for a Conditional Use hearing because of the Special Conservation (SC) portion of the parcel. A HUGE mistake that Council made initially was to waive our requirement of the filing of a “developmental plan”, since the track was presented as a “conceptual” project. (DOES THAT SOUND FAMILIAR?)

I would insist they present finalized site plans before any decision is rendered. Such site plan should be very carefully scrutinized! After 3 separate evenings of sworn testimony from all parties involved, Council approved the project with conditions. Such conditions were similar to those imposed in the Zoning Hearing Board’s grant of Special Exception, with some additions. I guess one has to figure out what Conditions would apply and best protect the community.

Now, for perhaps one of the most important issues. This point is very, very recent in it’s development. As a matter of fact, this problem only surfaced at this past Monday’s Council meeting. It seems as if our Zoning Hearing Board and its Special Exception decision did not specify a decibel limit on sound! They referred to noise/sound control issues, the erection of sound barriers, etc., and set a requirement on the decibel level of EACH vehicle, but made no reference to the cumulative decibel level emanating from the track! Council, however, set a limit of 80db at the property line, but our decision was apparently pertinent to the portion of the track that had not been zoned as SC. HUGE MISTAKE!!!

Good Grief, I sure hope you folks DON’T have zoning. It might be easier in the long run. Our mistakes with this project were simple oversights, but will cost us plenty in the long run, including our sanity! I guess we went into this with a great deal of innocence and really got taken advantage of by the track owners.

Oh, by the way, the track has failed to comply with ANY of the Conditions that I have outlined above. Conditions we placed on their operation. We may need to seek an injunction from the courts to stop their operation completely and get this straightened out. I have grave doubts that such an action will be taken as I have little faith of the objectivity of my fellow Council members and their interest in incurring the legal costs of doing what is proper at this time.

The long and short of this? We got “Screwed”.

Let me know what else I can do for you, I’m happy to help.