Shining Rock Development thumbs its nose at the environment

Another example of Shining Rock Development, LLC's way of doing business. According the following information comes from an article which appears in the July 14, 2005 edition of the Worcester Telegram Gazette, Shining Rock Development, LLC and some of its business partners are in a little hot water over ignoring environmental concerns. Notice that this is the second reporting in a local paper. Anyone from Shining Rock care to comment?

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According to the article, which is authored by Linda Bock, The DEP of Massachusetts (Dept of Environmental Protection) has cited the company developing the new Shining Rock Golf Course in Northbridge. Shining Rock Development, LLC, headquartered in Lincoln, MA and presided over by Fred Ruland. Ths is not the first time environmental concerns have been raised in one of Shining Rock Development, LLC's projects.

Residents have expressed concerns over noise pollution, trash dumping (which may have subsequently been buried on the site), improperly cared for drains, excessive runoff and excessive dirt from construction. When concerns are brought up, the principles and representatives of Shining Rock Development, LLC take a stance which many describe as arrogant, cold and uncaring. It will be interesting to see how they handle the sate and federal government.

The background, as quoted in the Times Gazette article: those involved are Shining Rock Development and Whitinsville Water Co, represented by a Mr. Coz.

"Mr. Coz owns property off Sutton Street that contains a pump house and well field. Shining Rock has leased a portion of the site from Mr. Coz in order to withdraw water to irrigate its golf course, and hired Whitinsville Water Co., a Massachusetts for-profit corporation, to assist with the water withdrawals.

DEP officials and the Conservation Commission viewed the site May 4 and observed dredging, alteration and removal of wetlands associated with a stream and the Blackstone River bank without required permits. The officials also observed the clear-cutting of about .75 acres of riverfront area adjacent to the Blackstone River, within 10 feet of the river in some areas.

Administrative orders dealing with those violations were issued to both Shining Rock LLC and Mr. Coz on June 21."

Government officials ordered both Shining Rock and Mr. Coz to take every reasonable step to put an end to violations of environmental statutes, inlcuding the Wetlands Protection Act and Clean Waters Act. According to the author, "..further, the DEP ordered both to cease and desist from all construction-related activities on the site; to hire, within 30 days of the order, a wetlands scientist/specialist to assess the amount of damage/alteration to bordering vegetated wetlands, riverbank, riverfront and bordering land subject to flooding; and within 45 days, Shining Rock’s scientist shall prepare a detailed wetland restoration plan for all of the damaged/altered wetlands resource areas. "

The administrative orders issued to the two parties state that they could be fined up to $25,000 per day for failure cease the violations.

Further, the author states that, "...Whitinsville Water Co. was ordered to cease and desist from ongoing violations, including clear-cutting of about two acres of riverfront area adjacent to the Blackstone River, within 10 feet of the Blackstone River in some areas; dredging of about 500 linear feet of bank of an unnamed stream; and filling an undetermined amount of bordering wetlands associated with the stream and the Blackstone River.DEP viewed the site with the local Conservation Commission May 4, and again May 16, observing the violations.

The order to Whitinsville Water Co. also requires the preparation of a wetlands restoration plan. Whitinsville Water Co. did not appeal the May 16 order, according to Mr. Coletta. He said the 21-day appeal period has expired. "

Whitinsville Water Co. is taking the stance that they are not in violation, as they, "...were hired by the Shining Rock Partners to make extensive and necessary repairs to an aging well field that did not operate properly.” Further, the Whitinsville Water Company representative insists the company did not participate in the cutting of trees. On the property ownership issue, according to a government spokesman, it is not necessary to be a property owner to be found in violation of the law.

This apparently is not the first time Shining Rock Development, LLC has had occasion to hear from the Conservation Commission. In fact, on April 21, 2004 Commission issued an enforcement order to Shining Rock which alleged other violations of the Wetlands Protection Act.
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All items in quotes and background information is from the Worcester Times Gazette, July 14, 2005 edition. The article

Article on Upton's dealings with Shining Rock Development, LLC

From the Milford Daily News, Wednesday, July 6, 2005.
Notes: Noble Vista is a 40B development proposed by Shining Rock Development, LLC as part of the overall Shining Rock master plan. Please note that, according to the article the developer has failed to comply with specific mandates handed down by regulatory agencies. Please also note the response of Stan Pearson, representative for Shining Rock and Noble Vista. How, we wonder does Mr. Pearson propose "middle ground" when, according to what's presented here, they've simply not given in to basic requirements like hiring a consultant? Is Shining Rock Development, LLC immune to the laws and requirements of the state and town?

Read through and make your own decision.

Developer seeks 'middle ground' for problems at 40B site
By Josh Press / Daily News Staff
Wednesday, July 6, 2005

UPTON -- The Conservation Commission last night continued its hearing on whether to revoke Orders of Conditions on the 40B development Noble Vista and the Shining Rock Golf Course until July 28.

Solutions are being sought to fix numerous problems that have existed on those sites for several years, commission members said.

In a letter dated June 14 from the commission to representatives of each project, it is noted that developer Noble Vista LLC, despite repeated requests, has not taken any action to alleviate increased drainage problems on Hartford Avenue, the site of the Noble Vista development.

The commission also charged in the letter that work on Shining Rock has resulted in "significant siltation in wetlands at Noble Vista, and construction of a dam has changed stream flow through the Noble Vista site," located on the Northbridge town line.

Although orders were issued against both Shining Rock LLC and Noble Vista LLC in late 2003 to clean up the wetlands, none has thus far occurred, according to the commission.

Additionally, in April 2004, the commission asked Shining Rock and Noble Vista -- a yet to be constructed 150-unit complex -- to hire consultants to monitor the wetlands for further damage and restoration activities, but that never happened either, said commission Chairwoman Margaret A. Carroll.

Requests by the commission for drainage analysis from each development to document changes in the stream flow from the dam have not been answered either, the letter stated.

"We're trying to work in concert with the (Department of Environmental Protection)," said Carroll, who noted that the DEP recommended holding the hearing. "At this point, we're frustrated, as is the DEP."

On behalf of each development, attorney Kathleen J. Freeman of Bowditch & Dewey responded to the commission's allegations in aletter yesterday by first noting that "Noble Vista is troubled by the unfounded allegations ... against its Chapter 40B-permitted affordable housing project, especially since no actual construction work has begun under the Orders of Conditions at issue."

That defense was in specific reference to the overflow of water on Hartford Street that Noble Vista said was the town's problem and that it had no responsibility to deal with the matter.

In regards to Shining Rock, Turner said that silt deposits into the wetlands had in fact been cleaned up, particularly in intermittent streams along the first and second holes of the golf course and along the drainage swale along the nearby Grafton and Upton Railroad.

After arguing for nearly two hours, with no resolution in sight, the commission and representatives from Noble Vista and Shining Rock agreed to hold a joint workshop, with the Board of Selectmen in attendance, on July 20 to address the drainage issues on Hartford Avenue. The workshop would be prior to the next hearing.

"I hope we can come together and find a solution," said Shining Rock project manager Stan Pearson. "There are a lot of things to weigh here. I'd be happy ... to work something out and come to some sort of middle ground."

Staff Writer Josh Press can be reached at 508-634-7556 or jpress@cnc.com

SRD & the Fallen Sign

Those of you who've driven through the Fairways at Shining Rock development near the proposed clubhouse for Shining Rock Development, LLC's golf course surely have noticed that one side of the brand new sign has already fallen down. In fact, it's been on the ground for a couple of weeks now.

Brings to mind a couple of questions:
- what can you expect from a developer who doesn't maintain a sign that's directly in front of his place of business, especially one that's brand new? Do they see the downed sign when they drive past it every day?

- what does this say about Shining Rock Development, LLC's standards in terms of professionalism, presentation, execution and marketing?

- does this give us some hints as to how they will handle the golf course once it's opened?

- even if Shining Rock Development, LLC's standards allow the sign to lay on the ground, do ya think they understand how this makes the neighborhood look? Do ya think they care?

Of course, one might take a cue from the condition of the most visible hole on the golf course. #10 is visible from just inside the Upton entrance to the community. A close look reveals ruts, wheel marks, what appears to be turf burn, etc. (Someone reported that two guys were around the green on this hole with the same kind of lawn mowers we use at home) Of all of the parts of the course, I understand this one has been in the longest. If this is any indication of the way the golf course will be cared for, it's hard to imagine how they will get people to pay $80+ a round.

What is it P.T. Barnum's said? Something about a sucker's being born every minute..............?

Shining Rock Drainage - saga continues

Not sure what's going on but Shining Rock Development, LLC's had quite a bit of equipment and lots of manpower devoted to a retention pond and drainage close to School St. in Northbridge. How likely is it that Shining Rock Development, LLC is spending $$ on infrastructure unless compelled to do so? After all, I hear many of the first closings were delayed by months simply because water, sewer, electricity and other essential services had not been installed. In fact, phones weren't available to the first residents for weeks. If the Town of Northbridge had not instituted a rule that denied certificates of occupancy to units without phone service, who knows how long those poor folks would have waited.

Back to the point - I hear through a source in DPW that there's concerns about the infrastructure here - will it hold up? Is it built right to begin with? If they're continuing to rework existing systems, one might wonder.

Time will tell...........

Another day of blocked streets

Today's posting was sent to me by one of the residents. As we've reported several times, the contractors and representatives working for Pulte Homes of New England, LLC and Shining Rock Development, LLC
seem not to give a damn about whether residents can actually use the streets. The most recent picture on this site is dated June 28th. Just when we thought we might actually go a day without sitting behind trucks, half naked workers and trailers of construction materials, the good folks in whose work site we happen to live exhibited the kind of consistency that would make a mom proud. This time, though, the experience is enhanced by the kind, caring touch of a Pulte Homes of New England, LLC construction manager. Just wait to you read this......
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The message:
June 29th: a box shaped cargo truck on one side, a flat bed on the other, leaving barely enough room to get through (and not enough room to safely see around a curve). Bad enough - then add in a tanker truck delivering diesel fuel. The tanker truck stops in the middle of the street, just past the spot where the two other truck are parked on either side. The result? If I had been able to squeeze my car between the trucks, I couldn't have gotten past the tanker. Frustrated, I turned around and went back home. (By the way, several workers walked right by my car and made eye contact as I sat in disbelief. Not a single one made any attempt to help or make my plight known to the owners of the vehicles.)

As I walked back to the blockade, I decided to find a Pulte Homes of New England, LLC construction manager in the hopes of making him aware. Ted, or Todd (not sure), when asked how the hell I was supposed to get out, responded, "....where do you want to go?" I shook my head in disbelief, then asked what that had to do with anything. Ted or Todd then looked at the space (the tanker truck was now gone) and said, "...looks like you can get through now..."

Underwhelmed by Todd or Ted's response, I thanked him for his consideration of the residents' lives and walked away. I just couldn't believe that he totally dismissed my concern. It was obvious that he just didn't care that I couldn't get to an appointment because of Pulte's failure to manage their vendors.
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My takeaway - Pulte Homes of New England, LLC. Shining Rock Development, LLC and all the contractors clearly think of The Fairways at Shining Rock simply as a place where they work and litter. The residents are like the building inspectors, municipal departments or government agencies who simply annoy them with our presence and desire for accountability. Shame on us for not just understanding that it's their land and they'll do anything they want with it.

Good thing we only have 2 more years of this