ASHFIELD — The Zoning Board of Appeals is slated to hear an appeal of the building commissioner’s determination that 995 West Road can be grandfathered in and continue to operate as a junkyard.
The appeal was filed by Randy Gobeil, a West Road resident, who previously served as a ZBA alternate and stepped down last week. His decision to resign, according to his letter to the board, stems from the perceived inaction pertaining to the junkyard.
“I’m sorry to say that after one year of volunteering on the Ashfield ZBA, I must resign. When I joined the board, it was a standing order from Building Commissioner James Hawkins that the property owners of 995 West Road must clean up their junkyard business. I thought the matter was settled and didn’t expect I’d still be working along with my West Road neighbors to get this mess cleaned up,” Gobeil wrote in his resignation letter. “The situation for me has become untenable; I must resign in order to effectively express my opinion as a private citizen moving forward.”
Gobeil cited a 2022 letter written by Hawkins. Following complaints from neighbors, Hawkins had ordered Brian Dickinson to clean up the property, because using it as a junkyard violated Sections VI B1 and VI E of Ashfield’s zoning bylaws. Four years later, the property is still being used as a junkyard, after being grandfathered in by Hawkins.
In a phone interview last month, Hawkins explained that his decision was based on affidavits from neighbors who said the property has been used as a junkyard since before the zoning rules took effect. The zoning regulations banned junkyards in 1995, though residents can obtain permission via a special permit.
“Brian has been doing this his whole life. … No one has ever done anything,” Hawkins said.
Hawkins added that while it may be unsightly, he does not believe the junkyard poses any health and safety risks. According to appeals documents, Hawkins ordered property owners Jason Dickinson, Brian Dickinson’s son, and Sabra Billings to put up a fence around the property earlier this year.
John McLaughlin, an attorney representing Gobeil in the appeal, wrote that only a few junk vehicles were on the property prior to the 1995 zoning regulations. He argued that not enough of the property was being used for it to be considered a junkyard at the time.
“Whether it is a violation of the general bylaw or a violation of the provision from the 1978 zoning bylaws doesn’t really matter,” McLaughlin wrote. “What matters is that it seems highly unlikely that the predecessor of the current owners could operate a commercial junkyard prior to April 19, 1995, without having more than one unregistered motor vehicle on the property, which could be seen by the abutter to the north. That being the case, the use was illegal and cannot be used to justify any prior nonconforming rights.”
Gobiel added that the affidavits secured by the Dickinson’s are not from West Road residents, and he has affidavits from West Road residents who said the junkyard did not predate the bylaws.
A letter from West Road resident Cynthia Burch said she did not see any evidence of a junkyard until 2015, and the conditions of the property have only gotten worse.
In a letter to Gobeil, Hawkins wrote that he consulted with town counsel and determined that, while operations may have grown over the years, the junkyard did exist prior to 1995.
“I determined it was more likely than not that the present junkyard operations began prior to April 1995,” Hawkins wrote. “I found that the degree of operations has increased significantly, particularly during the past few years; however, the nature and character of the use had not substantially changed in a manner sufficient to meet the threshold for change of use under the applicable zoning laws.”
Gobiel stated that even if the junkyard existed before 1995, which he believes it didn’t, it did not exist before the 1978 bylaws, which he says also ban junkyards.
The 1978 version of the Ashfield Zoning Bylaws declares the entire town as a rural-residential and agricultural district, barring industrial and business zones, and specifically states, “As determined necessary by the board of Selectmen, accumulated or scattered junk, debris, scrap materials or any other objectionable objects shall be kept out of view.” The bylaw also bans keeping more than one unregistered vehicle without a special permit.
Gobiel said no business has ever been licensed or received a special permit at the property.
In the appeals documents, Hawkins wrote that the 1978 bylaw bars vehicles from being visible, and according to available GIS imagery from the ’90s, the vehicles were deep in the woods and not visible from the street.
The 1995 version of the town’s bylaws specifically prohibited junkyards.
The Zoning Board of Appeals tentatively plans to hold a public hearing on Gobeil’s appeal on Thursday, March 26, at Ashfield Town Hall on Main Street.