BBKC Forum: PENNSYLVANIA

PENNSYLVANIA

Posted by The King on March 11, 2008, 12:45 pm
75.22.23.246

Judge tells Amish: Quiet down
By Phil Ray, pray@altoonamirror.com

Fact Box
The rules
Under Blair County Judge Tim Sullivan’s ruling:
— The sawmill can operate from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and cannot operate on weekends, legal holidays and Christmas Eve.
— Industrial silencers or a newly constructed wall must be used to quiet a blower at the Amish furniture factory.
— The dog kennel must be operated within state law.
— The order must be complied with within 60 days.

HOLLIDAYSBURG — A Blair County judge has ruled that an Amish family in Sinking Valley can continue to operate a sawmill, a furniture-making business and a dog kennel but must take steps to limit noise that disturbs the neighbors.

Judge Tim Sullivan’s order Monday also banned use of the sawmill on weekends, legal holidays and Christmas Eve.

He also ordered the family, led by Noah Hostetler and his wife, Mary, of Box 272, Tyrone RD 1, to take steps to create a sound barrier around the dust blower at the furniture factory, either by installing industrial silencers or constructing a ‘‘rigid wall lined with absorbent material’’ around the blower.

Sullivan did not find that the dog kennel constituted a private nuisance under the law, but he ordered the Hostetlers to obey state dog laws in the operation of their kennel.

The Hostetlers have 60 days to comply with the order.

The restrictions, Sullivan said, ‘‘should allow [the neighbors] some guaranteed quiet time [relative to the sawmill operation] in which to have private use and enjoyment of their respective properties.’’

He said his order should in no way impair the Hostetlers ability to support themselves and their families.

Neither attorney James N. Bryant of Centre County, representing the Hostetlers, nor Steve Wicks of Altoona, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of the Hostetler neighbors, were available for comment Monday.

Two neighbors had mixed feelings about the ruling.

Bonnie Mauk, who has lived in her Sinking Valley home for 30 years, said she was pleased with the rulings on the sawmill and blower but upset with the decision not t! o impose additional restrictions on the dog kennel.

She said the dogs represent a major disturbance in the rural area.

‘‘I can’t stand to live like this,’’ she said, noting she wants to appeal the lack of action concerning the dogs. ‘‘I don’t want to shut anybody down and stop anybody from making a living.’’

Another neighbor, Betty Shearburn, said she agreed with the judge’s decision on the saw mill and blower, but she said The dogs bark day and night.

Sullivan visited the area and watched a video of the sights and sounds from the Hostetler property.

He ruled although he was able to hear the barking, it did not rise to the level that would justify legal sanctions against the Hostetlers.

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