tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4178530645168049349.post3076082878891189909..comments2024-03-04T00:51:50.562-05:00Comments on The Baiting Hollow Hummingbird Sanctuary: 2-prong attack on the Sanctuary!Paul Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16866196394764849380noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4178530645168049349.post-45792121418437319542014-01-13T21:02:25.428-05:002014-01-13T21:02:25.428-05:00Judy - thanks for the offer of help, I'll comm...Judy - thanks for the offer of help, I'll communicate with you privately (no need to let the enemy see our hand!)Paul Adamshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16866196394764849380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4178530645168049349.post-41384828186442648222014-01-13T07:58:35.889-05:002014-01-13T07:58:35.889-05:00Paul, Please let me know if there is anything the...Paul, Please let me know if there is anything the Great South Bay Audubon Society can do to help you.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02404584704940970531noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4178530645168049349.post-63584375676390565472014-01-05T11:23:52.262-05:002014-01-05T11:23:52.262-05:00Since it is usually open for only one month, you m...Since it is usually open for only one month, you might have something there. I am sure your neighbors' traffic over the year <br />could be greater than yours. You might need to limit the traffic a little more to satisfy them, if that is possible. Good luck with this valiant crusade, Paul. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14093958540228409153noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4178530645168049349.post-66033537168120547812014-01-03T15:27:04.221-05:002014-01-03T15:27:04.221-05:00Pat - thanks for your kind and supportive comment....Pat - thanks for your kind and supportive comment. I will do all I can to ensure that the sanctuary remains open. As you say, we need places like this to provide the peace and inspiration we all need in the trials of everyday life.<br />The issue will turn on 2 crucial points. While the relevant section of the Town Code cited in the "Notice of Violation" (see december post on this blog), "108-20.2 RA-80 Zoning Use District" does not explicitly permit the "operation of a hummingbird sanctuary", the "Purpose and Intent" of the zoning is, inter alia, to "conserve wooded areas and other natural features." (Paragraph 108-20.1). Since the only thing required for "operation of a hummingbird sanctuary" is precisely the conservation of wooded areas and other natural features (specifically, hummingbirds), it seems virtually impossible that this should not be an as-of-right use, not requiring permits. Essentially "operating a hummingbird sanctuary" involves leaving the land in its natural state, and I find impossible to believe this requires a permit, or is outlawed. If this were the case, all undeveloped land in Riverhead would be illegal.<br />So really the issue boils down to whether I can invite people to visit me at my residence or on my land (whether primarily to view, or at least talk about, hummingbirds, or for other purposes), via the existing, surveyed, deeded ROW from Sound Ave. Again, it would defy credibility if this were illegal, and would make the use of all developed land in Riverhead illegal.<br />So the only reasonable interpretation of the "Notice of Violation" would be that the whole of Riverhead, developed or not, is illegal! So I think somewhere there must be a mistake.<br />Now, if the hummingbird sanctuary is not illegal, most of the substance of the lawsuit evaporates. The only possible remaining ground of complaint would be annoyance to neighbors by the extra traffic causes by visitors. As a minimum, they would need to show that the traffic to my residence is far greater in volume, over the year, than the traffic to their own<br />residences.<br />As my readers and visitors know, I already take great pains to minimize the impact of traffic on neighbors. I am very open to discussions, with the Town, with my neighbors, or with their representatives, of additional ways to minimize the volume and impact of my visitors, provided that these do not greatly restrict the ability of people to visit me at my property. If on the other hand quantitative studies reveal that the volume of traffic to my property is less than that to other residences, perhaps we could negotiate reductions of the impact of that traffic on me!<br />Of course, misled by logic and my imperfect knowledge of my native language, I might have completely miscontrued the situation. To this end I am taking the best legal advice I can find and afford.<br />Per ardua ad astra.Paul Adamshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16866196394764849380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4178530645168049349.post-40976530534051237782014-01-03T11:30:45.007-05:002014-01-03T11:30:45.007-05:00It is such a shame that this lovely paradise is in...It is such a shame that this lovely paradise is in jeopardy. Paul has been so kind to share this with us all. I hope that the sanctuary can remain open and continue to be a place of peacefullness and inspiration. There is nowhere else on Long Island that one can view such an abundance of hummingbirds. What a wonderful gift to us all. I support all your efforts to keep it open. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14093958540228409153noreply@blogger.com