NEW SCOTLAND – The former firehouse on New Salem Road will soon be home to a fire investigation office.

Stuart Morrison has owned Morrison Engineering – a company that investigates claims for insurance agencies – since 1996.

Morrison’s application was heard before the planning board last week.

He plans to buy the property from William and Jeffrey Lawyer, who currently own the 1.75-acre property, adjacent to the Punkintown Fair grounds. The fairgrounds are not part of the property. He intends to use the existing structure as an office, and to construct a 42-by-78-foot building as a storage unit for collected evidence.

Morrison told the board that most of the evidence is charred appliances that would be transported to the site via pickup truck. He explained that he will not be holding any types of hazardous materials, or anything that would cause environmental concerns.

Chairman Robert Stapf joked that, if anything happened, the firehouse is just across the street.

Morrison told The Enterprise he keeps evidence "anywhere from two months to 10 years" depending on the case. "As soon as everything gets worked out, then we get authorization to throw it away," he said.

The board allowed Janice Weston, a neighbor who lives next to the property, to address some of her concerns to Morrison.

Weston asked Morrison if he planned to install any additional lighting on the property. He said he had not planned on it. She also was concerned about the location of the second building. Morrison said the building would be located behind the existing structure and would not be visible from New Salem Road.

The board approved Morrison’s application with the stipulations that there be parking for at least two vehicles on the north side of the building; that the lighting, if any, be non-intrusive; there be access on the north side only; and there be no environmental concerns.

Morrison said this approval marked the last step in his qualification for a purchase contract. He hopes to begin construction by the end of the month, he told The Enterprise.

Other business

In other business, the board:

– Heard from Dean VanAlstyne and Martin Flansburg on their application for a use variance to use a residential property on Delaware Turnpike for a commercial use. VanAlstyne hopes to build a structure for use as garage and office space for his business, Hydrotech. Flansburg must prove financial hardship in order to be granted the variance. The zoning board will make the decision on the variance. The board forwarded the application back to the zoning board. It will come back to the planning board for site plan review;

– Heard from Jon Petrecky on his application for a special-use permit to allow him to deposit more than 100 yards of fill on his property on Orchard Hill Road. He would obtain the fill both on-site and off-site. He plans to fill in and grade an area on which he will then construct a home. The board scheduled a public hearing on his proposal for next month;

– Heard from Ronald Shelmerdine on his application for a special use permit to allow him to deposit more than 100 yards of fill on his property on New Salem South Road. He would obtain the fill on site. He wants to fill in an area for access, and an area large enough to install a septic system. The board suggested he install a silt fence to prevent runoff, and scheduled a public hearing for next month;

– Heard from Charles Carrow on a request to continue use of a temporary construction access for the professional building at 1882 New Scotland Rd, near the old Tee-Time Golf site, until the time that Phase II of the project has been reviewed. This would allow the structure associated with Phase II to be built before the completion of the road, and eliminate the need to construct the road twice. The board approved the request with the stipulation that the temporary roadway be paved back from the road 30 feet, and have compacted, crushed stone the rest of the way. Carrow must also set up a financial escrow account with the town; and

– Heard from Christopher Mielke on behalf of Joseph and Lillian Orsini, on an application for a special-use permit to deposit more than 100 yards of fill on a 7.3-acre property that Mielke intends to purchase from the Orsini’s on Wood Wind Drive. The fill would be obtained off-site and would be used to create a level area around a proposed new home. Mielke also plans to build a pond on the property, and will fill out the appropriate paperwork to add that to the current application. The board scheduled a public hearing for next month.