PA City Plans to Take Salvage Dealer Back to Court

The city's zoning hearing board took the North Side businessman to court in late August, claiming Dahlstrom had not followed through on a Venango County court order to erect adequate fencing around part of his operation or maintain safety setbacks around his scrap piles.

That action continued what has already amounted to a decade of bickering between Dahlstrom and the city's code and zoning offices.

Venango County Judge H. William White ordered last fall that Dahlstrom was to complete the fence project and setback clearing by April 18. In February, the zoning board relaxed part of White's ruling and told him not to construct the fence on three sides of his operation - but at least make sure the Seneca Street side was shielded.

Dahlstrom did not meet the April 18 deadline, and last month the city took him before District Justice William Martin. Rick Cook, Oil City's zoning officer, said board members had "bent over backwards" for Dahlstrom and granted him enough time to meet their requirements.

Dahlstrom argued the fencing had been completed after the April deadline as more back-ordered materials became available to him. But neighboring businessman Louis Kraft said he has had to halt part of his concrete business because Dahlstrom's scrap heaps are falling onto his turf.

Martin ruled this month that Dahlstrom had complied by erecting the fence, but he gave him another 30 days to clear the rights of way before imposing daily fines of $250 for each day the work is not complete.

In an executive session earlier this week, Oil City's zoning hearing board members agreed they would appeal Martin's finding and take Dahlstrom to the Venango County court of common pleas once again.

"They unanimously agreed to appeal the entire order of Magistrate Martin," Cook said Tuesday evening. "They believe he erred in his interpretation of Judge White's order and the city has no recourse but to appeal his order and try to get Mr. Dahlstrom to be in compliance with both White's order and the zoning hearing board decision of Feb. 25."

The zoning board has until Oct. 4 to appeal Martin's ruling, and Cook said the case could again go before White or Venango County Judge Oliver Lobaugh.

"We would hope it would go to Judge White since he's familiar with the case and his order was not followed through by Mr. Dahlstrom," Cook said.

When Terry Whitling, solicitor for the zoning hearing board, files the appeal, he will ask for the maximum penalty the city could impose against Dahlstrom for not complying with last year's order - $500 a day for each day after April 18 that the work isn't completed.

Cook said it "will be months" before the case is heard.

On Sept. 21, Dahlstrom said he has completed the required fencing along on one street, but the city's request for a 10-foot setback inside his property is "ludicrous." He claims it would hinder his ability to operate a salvage operation.

Dahlstrom said he is pursuing separate legal action to have the 10-foot rule stricken.

Because his 1.3 acre lot spans 691 by 90 feet, he said buildings, scales and the 10-foot setbacks would leave him with 50 percent of his yard on which to operate.

"You can't get a tractor-trailer in there," Dahlstrom said. "It's a ludicrous ordinance because of the way my yard's shaped. ... I don't feel it's legal. They're taking my property and I can't use it. They're taxing my property. It's like getting a date with Raquel Welch and being told you can't go out with her."

With the limited space, Dahlstrom said he has nowhere but some of that right-of-way space in which to park his vehicles.

"They're trying to force me out of business; they've been trying to do it for 19 years. They're limiting me with what I can do with my business. They want me out of town and they keep making rules to get me out of here." The Derrick