YORK COUNTY, Pa. — Residents in one Spring Garden Township neighborhood are used to peace and quiet.
But lately, that hasn’t been the case.
“My alarm clock is the dump truck slamming at 7:00 a.m., on the button every day," said resident Amy Mitten.
“I have to listen to rocks being dumped out, beeping, vibrating, of course, there’s the heavy equipment operating," added her husband, Charles Mitten.
One after another, trucks head in and out of 711 Olive Street, a once-vacant lot that’s now a construction dumping site for Inch & Co.
Spring Garden Township and residents both say the dirt is coming from another site the company is working on in Mount Wolf.
“This is an 8 to 12-hour-a-day episode," said Amy Mitten. "They come in here, they dump their dirt, they bang their tailgates.”
The Mittens live right across the street.
“It’s hard to concentrate, hard to live," said Charles Mitten. "Add on top of that, all the dust, you can’t keep your house clean.”
Beyond what they say is constant noise, they, along with other neighbors, are worried about the impact on their property values. They also believe the site, which is connected to a quarry, is not operating safely nor properly fenced in.
"They could easily have a major catastrophe here and they’re not protecting anyone against it," said Amy Mitten.
Residents want the township to step in, but say so far, municipal leaders haven’t done anything to help.
“You don’t allow something like this to go on in a residential neighborhood," said William Price, another resident in the neighborhood. "You just don’t let it happen.”
The township says Inch & Co. has all proper municipal and DEP permits for the project but says those documents must be requested through a Right to Know Request.
It also tells FOX43 that a preliminary land development plan has been submitted for review at the November planning commission meeting.
“Would they want this beside their home?" asked Price. "Or their mother’s home? Or their sister’s or children’s? The answer would be no, so the question is, why are you allowing it in our neighborhood?"
FOX43 reached out to Inch & Co. asking for an interview to learn more about the long-term plans for the site.
The owner responded with this statement:
“At this time I have no comment. We are abiding by all local and state laws.”
Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection confirms Inch & Co. has acquired a General NPDES Construction Stormwater permit for the site and explains coverage under the NPDES permit was authorized by the York County Conservation District.
DEP says the permit does not permit dumping into the quarry. The fill can only be placed in upland areas.