Huntington Town Supervisor Chad Lupinacci at a meeting in Town Hall...

Huntington Town Supervisor Chad Lupinacci at a meeting in Town Hall on Feb. 11. Credit: Barry Sloan

Huntington officials are moving to cut the red tape when dealing with property nuisance violations and also want to strengthen the town’s ability to recover the cost of cleaning up such properties. 

The town board will hold a public hearing to consider streamlining and standardizing the process to address cleaning up properties with accumulated garbage or rubbish, pooling water that attracts bugs and vermin, or junk cars.

Right now, there are different procedures on how to abate such nuisances scattered within different chapters of town code, town officials said. The proposed changes are designed to allow town officials to resolve issues more quickly.

Town Supervisor Chad Lupinacci said there was a recent issue involving a house designated as blighted by the town on Beltane Drive in Dix Hills where an accumulation of trash inside and outside of the residence created an eyesore and public safety hazard. An unpleasant odor wafting through the neighborhood also created a quality-of-life issue for neighbors, Lupinacci said.

While town officials worked to resolve the issues within its jurisdiction, it was a lengthy process, Lupinacci said.

“The current process adds a layer by requiring the town board to approve the cleanup of each lot and the town attorney has to send letters to each property resulting in delays of two months,” Lupinacci said. “The changes will make things more efficient.”

The letters say the town board has passed a resolution directing that the property be cleaned or the town will do it. The new procedure would not require a resolution and the letter would be sent by public safety. General Services will still clean the property for the town and the town attorney's office will bill the property owner. Other updates include defining prohibited property conditions and who is liable for the cost of removals or abatements. 

Chris D'Andrade, who lives on Beltane, testified along with several neighbors at a February town board hearing to consider designating the house on Beltane as blighted. He said it’s about time the town is making changes to help residents around the town avoid the headache and delays he and his neighbors have endured for years because of a neighbor's neglected house.

“They could have moved this along a lot quicker if they had looked at other townships and what they have done,” D’Andrade said. “It’s unfortunate that it took us to help get this going, it’s something that should have been addressed a long time ago.”

Lupinacci said there is a distinction between a property being blighted, which is something town officials address on a regular basis, and a property with nuisance violations.

“Blighted properties are properties that itself, the structure, is decaying,” Lupinacci said. “Nuisances are things that are the property of, or things on the property, things that can be removed, it’s a fine line but it’s technically not blight.” 

The town board is scheduled to hold a public hearing June 16 at 2 p.m.

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