Roslyn Heights Masonry Business Accused Of Improperly Expanding Operations
ROSLYN HEIGHTS, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A legal battle brewing on Long Island has pitted homeowners against a masonry business that has operated there for decades.
Town leaders say they're concerned about a health hazard.
As TV 10/55's Long Island Bureau Chief Richard Rose reported, a half dozen residents staged a protest Monday on residential property bordering the Powerhouse Mason Supply business just off the Long Island Expressway in Roslyn Heights.
Their main complaint is that a business only licensed to sell specialty stones and bricks is instead manufacturing them on site.
"Whatever they're doing to cut marble and tile goes into the air and it affects my chest, and I find it very hard to breathe," Elliot Hurley said.
A neighbor who took pictures of the site claims large trucks have been operating inside the property -- stirring up clouds of dust and unbearable noise.
"Even on the weekend when they start working here early, you can hear it. You can't sleep," Shah Giashuddin said.
The owner of a neighboring building said he hasn't been able to open his new business because no one will work next to the noisy, dusty operation with its constant truck traffic off the LIE.
"Every time they get a delivery, the whole road closes down. This is multiple times a day," Steve Osman said.
Neither the owners nor their attorney would address the complaints, although one supporter -- a local contractor -- said the business has operated without a complaint for 60 years. He said that one of the neighbors made things worse himself by cutting down a line of trees that had once separated the properties.
"With the absence of a tree line that he cut down, there is a visibility factor that didn't exist before," David Griffin explained.
In a statement, the North Hempstead Town Supervisor said the town is taking legal against the business for alleged violations of town code.
The town's main claim is that the masonry business has improperly expanded into the surrounding residential zone.
On Wednesday, the zoning board will hear appeals from both sides.