» Follow Sam Pratt on Twitter
Big news breaking out of Taghkanic... Judge Patrick McGrath has issued a ringing decision in the long-running Wilzig case.
McGrath's ruling grants the Granger Group's petition for a permanent injunction against the mile-long, 40-foot-wide racetrack which Alan Wilzig began bulldozing (without seeking permits to do so) way back in the Summer of 2006:
"Petitioners request for a permanent injunction is granted enjoining the Town of Taghkanic, Zoning Board of Appeals of the Town of Taghkanic, Town of Taghkanic Planning Board, Dennis Callahan as Code Enforcement Officer and Building Inspector for the Town of Taghkanic or any other employee or agent of the Town of Taghkanic from issuing a Building Permit, Certificate of Compliance and/or Certificate of Occupancy or Site Plan approval for the sporting course or track located on the Wilzig property and Alan Wilzig and Karin Wilzig are permanently enjoined form using, constructing, or completing the sporting course or track in any way or manner as well as any agent, guest or invitee of Alan or Karin Wilzig."
A copy of the decision can be downloaded by clicking here.
Local residents only found out what all that racket was up at the old Scheuer farm from a gossip column in The New York Post. Then it was off to the races (pun intended) with a lengthy, costly, byzantine and bitter dispute which garnered coverage in both the local and national press.
McGrath's ruling is a marvelous vindication of the many citizens who have doggedly researched and challenged a very rich and entitled opponent and political establishment for several years now—with thousands of volunteer hours devoted to grassroots activism, countless ZBA/Planning/Town board meetings, and multiple court cases.
Special thanks are due to Christine Tallackson, who followed the issue from the outset through to this hard-fought victory, and to the neighbors of the racetrack who had the guts to put their names to the suit...
