Zoning board reverses decision
Seal coat company allowed to open after owner’s death
After more than two years of contentious hearings between the town and a local sealcoating business, the Zoning Board of Appeals recently voted to allow the business to continue its operation.
The town of Colonie — along with more than 100 residents — had been attempting to shut down the operations of Empire Sealcoating, a 10-year-old business that is located on the fringe of a residential neighborhood on the west side of the Northway. The matter was made more complicated and painful after owner Ed Person, an Iraq War veteran and Albany firefighter, died by suicide on his property after a ZBA meeting in October 2020.
“His exact words were, ‘If I lose this, I lose everything,’” Maran Person, Ed Person’s wife, told the Times Union in October. “I’m a widow, I have two little kids, and I work a full-time job. I would like this to be settled so that I can move forward with my life.”
Months and numerous postponed and lengthy hearings later, the ZBA backtracked and unanimously voted in March to allow Empire Sealcoating to keep its certificate of occupancy and continue operations. The vote was brief and none of the board members spoke. The ZBA did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
“They clearly understood that the previous administration had an error in judgment in revoking the certificate of occupancy,” said Greg Teresi, one of the lawyers representing Empire Sealcoating. “I think the board really looked at the issue and said it wasn’t necessary. I got the sense they really didn’t want to waste any more time on it.”
Person expressed relief at the ZBA’S decision Wednesday.
“My late husband did not do anything wrong,” she said. “I was really glad to see that (the ZBA) saw the injustice that occurred when the town revoked the certificate of occupancy with no reason. I’m grateful that the business is allowed to operate again.”
The case had been muddled over the years with conflicting information about
what is, or isn’t, allowed for use at the site of Empire Sealcoating, in addition to questions
about why the business had been approved before but was then judged not to be in compliance with town codes.
In 2009, Person, a Bronze Star-decorated veteran, bought land at 200 Sunset Blvd. His application to start a seal coating business at the property was approved by the town a few months later. For more than 10 years Person ran what became a growing business while also serving on an Albany Fire Department rescue squad.
But after years of vigorous complaints from Person’s residential neighbors about truck traffic disturbing their otherwise quiet street, the town cited the growth of his business as a reason to shut it down.
Person received a stopwork order from the town in 2019 that stated the business approval he received in 2009 was an error “due to incorrect, inaccurate and/or incomplete information provided at the time of the application.” The letter offered no other details to explain the decision.
Testimonies at ZBA hearings eventually revealed why the business was being shut down: complaints about the hours of operation and the types of vehicles being driven through the neighborhood.
Empire Sealcoating is about a half-mile away from the houses on Sunset Boulevard, located at the street’s dead-end behind a locked fence. A gravel path to the business is lined with a wooded area, making it more secluded. But Empire’s trucks have to drive through the neighborhood to get to the business.
For neighboring residents, the closure or relocation of the business was viewed as being entirely appropriate.
One resident presented a petition with 120 signatures calling for the business to cease in its current location. Also, after a complaint in 2019, the state Department of Environmental Conservation issued a $960 penalty against Empire for disposing of items near a wetland area.
“We don’t like trucks coming through, the dirt all over the houses,” said neighbor Mike Fusco at a zoning meeting last year. “Our neighborhood is beautiful. There’s only one way in and one way out, and (Empire) affects everybody in that neighborhood. It’s for the good of one or the good of many.”
Private attorney David Rowley, who represented the town in the matter rather than former Town Attorney Mike Maguilli, said in October that finding a different access point to the business that wouldn’t require driving through the neighborhood would “solve a lot of problems.”
Teresi and Person said Wednesday they are hoping to work with the town or other entities, including New York state and the Airport Authority, that own the neighboring land to establish an alternative route.
“The neighbors have concerns — they live in a nice quaint neighborhood and there should be an effort to try to find an alternative route,” Teresi said.
“If you look at the neighboring properties ... they’re all government entities that could provide my client with an access route to Albany Shaker Road and completely eliminate the need for them to go through the neighborhood.”