Greene County, Pa., Judge William Nalitz has appointed a board of viewers to determine whether the owner of a Jefferson Township auto salvage yard should be compensated for the county's taking of his property.
The owner, Dennis Ruschel, had asked the court to appoint the viewers, claiming the county, authorized by a Aug. 15, 2001, court order, had seized his property along Route 188 under the eminent domain code.
As a result, Ruschel is entitled to compensation for the taking of his property, Ruschel's attorney Mark Morrison argued in papers filed with the court.
Ruschel claims the county's actions have diminished the value of the business, and resulted in the loss, of among other things, numerous antique items.
County solicitor David Hook could not be reached for comment. C. Robert McCall, solicitor for Jefferson Township, said, however, the county and township will file preliminary objections opposing the appointment of the viewers as well as the awarding of any compensation to Ruschel.
The county gained possession of the property last year after Ruschel failed to comply with a court order requiring him to clean up the site. Last month, the county hired a company to begin removing all scrap metal from the property.
Ruschel had been ordered to clean up the property after the county and Jefferson Township filed a lawsuit against him, claiming the salvage yard created a health and safety hazard for the community.
The state Department of Environmental Protection also had issued an administrative order in regard to the property, alleging Ruschel disposed of regulated wastes at the site without a permit.
Preliminary tests conducted at the site by DEP have indicated contamination of surface soils.
Following a hearing on the county and township's suit, Nalitz ordered Ruschel last August to halt operations at the yard until he cleaned up the property in a manner consistent with DEP regulations.
If he failed to comply with the remediation requirement, the county was permitted to take possession of the property, sell the inventory and use the proceeds to clean up the site, Nalitz said. Ruschel failed to comply with the order, and the county took possession of the property in October. (Pennsylvania) Observer Reporter