Kent Hollow Mine case resolved after years of litigation

AMENIA — The Town Board signed a resolution bringing an end to a history of litigation between Amenia’s Zoning Board of Appeals and principals of Kent Hollow Mine at a special meeting on Thursday, April 24.

It was a brief meeting with no public discussion before the vote except to make a clarifying change in the resolution’s wording, suggested by the Special Counsel to the town, George Lithco.

Under the conditions of the settlement, Kent Hollow will limit its soil mining work to 33 acres on its 82.3-acre Kent Hollow Road property, as agreed to in a 2017 permit application, and will limit the amount of mined materials to 15,000 yards annually, limiting the amount that may be taken from the property for its own use to 750 yards each month.

Operations are also to be limited to weekdays, with no operations on weekends, holidays or after sunset. The amendment made by Lithco before the resolution’s approval was to indicate that the word “annually” was to refer to a calendar year.

Mining phases are to be limited to five-acre parcels at any one time, with Kent Hollow agreeing to reclaim the mined areas as part of each phase whenever two acres have reached their final grade and are no longer used for mining.

Kent Hollow Mine has operated a small-scale sand and gravel mining operation since first applying for and having been granted a permit in 1978 as a non-conforming use. That original permit expired in 1989. The mine sought to expand operations through a 2016-17 application process.

It then submitted an application to the town of Amenia to increase operations in 2016 but withdrew that application shortly afterward, resubmitting it in February 2017.

The ZBA denied that 2017 application based on the mine’s non-conforming use designation and other issues, leading Kent Hollow to appeal. Litigation suing the town and officials resulted seeing the case considered eventually by the Dutchess County Supreme Court and the Southern District of New York.

During a special meeting on Monday, April 28, the Zoning Board of Appeals voted unanimously to authorize the settlement that had been agreed to by the Town Board. ZBA members David Menegat and James Wright recused from the vote.