Lincoln wins battle over junkyard ordinance

LINCOLN – The town won a significant battle in its war on junkyards with the release Tuesday of a court ruling holding an Enfield Road man liable for $50,100 in fines and $3,301 in attorneys’ fees for keeping too much junk on his property.

District Court Judge Kevin L. Stitham ruled that Thomas Rosebush of 221 Enfield Road violated the town’s anti-junkyard ordinance for running an unlicensed automobile graveyard and ordered him to remove all autos, scrap metal and wood and automotive parts from his property within 90 days.

Ruth Birtz, the town’s economic development assistant and a zoning enforcement officer, said she was pleased with the ruling.

“We can only go so far as code enforcement officers to enforce town regulations,” Birtz said Tuesday. “Without a court ruling to back our [position], we don’t have all the tools to do our jobs.”

The judge ruled that if Rosebush fails to comply with the order, he shall be assessed at least a $100-a-day fine after the 90 days have passed. Stitham also gave town workers permission to enter Rosebush’s property, remove the junk themselves and dispose of it however they see fit after the 90 days.

Rosebush must also allow town officials onto his property for inspections, the judge ruled.

Rosebush has about 30 days to appeal. His attorney, Bradford S. MacDonald of MacDonald & Dalton of Bangor, did not immediately return a telephone message seeking comment Tuesday. Rosebush has an unlisted number and could not be reached for comment.

Town officials regard court action as a last resort, one they are reluctant to take and have worked with town landowners to clear six properties without going to court, Birtz said. One owner successfully applied for a junkyard permit, thereby ending his status as a violator. Still, she hoped the court ruling would show other landowners that the town means business.

“This ruling shows that violations to our land-use ordinances will not be tolerated,” she said.

Town officials began to vigorously pursue anti-blight enforcement in late 2004, although they had intermittently tried to work with Rosebush since 1996, Birtz said. The town began pursuing Rosebush in court on Sept. 28, 2005, and appeared in civil court to argue the case on Jan. 24, the ruling states.

According to the court ruling on Feb. 9, Stitham wrote that the town proved that Rosebush had at least three junk automobiles, plus trailers, fuel storage and propane tanks, lawn mowers and other items on his property.

The ruling against Rosebush is the town’s most significant anti-junkyard victory to date. Town resident Edwin Goodwin has cleaned up his property but owes the town $37,000 in fines for allegedly maintaining a junkyard.

Town attorneys will be pursuing a settlement of the fines and have the option of attaching liens to properties, Birtz said.

Town zoning officers will begin pursuing another 10 properties that they feel are illegal junkyards, Birtz said.