Cleaning up Grossman’s O’side property

Posted

For years, the Town of Hempstead has been doing all it could legally to bring property owned by John Grossman, at 366-404 Atlantic Ave. in Oceanside, into compliance with town code, but to no avail.

Recently, however, according to Supervisor Anthony Santino, the town got all the necessary court approvals to enter the 3-acre property and clean it up. The property was in violation of the town code that deals with the accumulation of garbage or rubble as well as the height of lawns, weeds or brush. Grossman was cited for the outside storage of trailers, equipment and unregistered vehicles.

Santino said that in the first two days of the cleanup, workers removed 400 tons of debris, including trees, old trucks and tractors and a dilapidated shed. “The vegetation and overgrowth was so dense that you couldn’t even walk through it,” he said.

The town is not taking possession of the property, which remains in private hands, Santino said. “The costs associated with the cleanup will be assessed to the property, so the property owner will have to pay for these costs,” he said.

Because the cleanup took days, the costs will be significant, Santino added. “We had a large number of town personnel in here to clean up what was absolutely an outrageous mess,” he said.

Councilman Anthony D’Esposito said the town would now focus on the old American Legion building on the property. According to town code, the building commissioner can have a structure examined, and, if it is found to be dangerous or a hazard, request that the owner bring it into compliance. If the owner does not comply, the town board can vote to secure or demolish the structure. All the associated costs are assessed to the owner of the property.

“Once they are deemed unsafe structures, we will move forward from there, have them taken down,” D’Esposito said. “That way we can make this land safe and much better looking for the community.”

Santino said the town is also working, through the appropriate legal channels, to clean up the property across the street, which is also owned by Grossman, and also badly in need of upkeep.

“When I was a child, that was an A&P — I remember that very well,” Santino said, adding that in the past 20 years it has fallen into disrepair. “Actually between the two parcels, it’s an embarassment as people come through Oceanside. It’s an embarrassment for these two properties to be a blight on the community.”

Grossman, manager of Grossman’s Nursery, said he was never shown a document that gave the town permission to enter his property, much less cut down trees, take away vehicles and demolish buildings. Nassau County police were stationed outside the gates surrounding the area being worked on. Grossman said they kept him off his property.

“What authority do they have taking someone’s personal property?” he said. “It’s more than cutting the grass. They told the police they had a warrant. I did not see a warrant. They took a tractor, trucks, other things. I have no receipts. I know it isn’t right. I have to see some paperwork. They just broke the gate and entered my property. We’ve had this property 40 years. I think they’ve misconstrued the law. I think that pertains to a house — if the grass is high, the town can come in and cut the grass. They know I have a business. You don’t take business material and say it’s garbage. I researched it — if you have a fenced-off property, you can’t come in and take an unregistered vehicle.”

Grossman said he was cited in early spring for the overgrown grass on the property. “So I’ve been cutting the grass,” he said. “I spoke to sanitation inspectors. They pointed out some areas, and said take care of that and it would be OK. Then they showed up and broke the fence and went in. Just don’t come and steal my stuff.”

Asked about Grossman’s claims, Santino said that everything was done through the town attorney, and that Grossman could file a Freedom of Information Law request to see the documents.

Santino said records were kept of all the property that was removed. Some of it will be sold to a scrap yard, he said, and the proceeds will be deducted from the costs charged to Grossman for the cleanup.