As pressure mounts for a full cleanup of 10 Church Road, Woodstock Supervisor Bill McKenna questions the last-minute cancellation of his appearance on a Q&A panel for a screening of Shady Waters, a documentary about the ongoing saga.
McKenna was invited on October 18 to speak at the October 20 screening, only to receive word of the cancellation Friday morning.
The documentary was produced by filmmaker Chris Finlay. A group of neighbors known as Protect Woodstock’s Water has helped Finlay promote the film and has organized the appearances of experts on the Q&A panels.
Protect Woodstock’s Water member and spokesperson Julie Szabo said geologist John Conrad, who was scheduled for the October 20 panel, could not appear with McKenna because he is a material witness in litigation against the town regarding the Shady property.
Conrad confirmed legal counsel advised him it would be a conflict.
Since McKenna was removed, Conrad participated in the October 20 panel as scheduled.
Reynolds Lane residents Frank and Pam Eighmey have sued the town for failure to enforce an adequate cleanup.
Conrad was volunteering his time and hydrologist Paul Rubin was already booked for the October 28 screening, so as a group, Protect Woodstock’s Water asked McKenna to move to the panel with Rubin, Szabo said.
“Our intention in the Q&A’s is to have a hydrogeologist at each screening as we are interested in a scientifically informed conversation,” she said.
“We are trying to steer away from politics and generate questions and conversation.”
McKenna hasn’t decided if he will attend the October 28 screening.
McKenna said nothing precludes anyone from speaking about the dumping and cleanup. He is frustrated it was the second time he had been asked to address the issue only to be denied at the last minute.
“I looked forward to addressing misinformation and half quotes. The group even advertised my presence on Facebook,” McKenna said in person and in a letter to the editor.
“Between the invitation on Wednesday and Friday morning, something changed.”
McKenna was scheduled for an interview ahead of the movie’s June 26 screening at Tinker Street Cinema, which was canceled after the theater management received threats of a lawsuit from property owner Vincent Conigliaro.
For its part, Protect Woodstock’s Water is just trying to urge the town to insist on a full cleanup and wants the nearby water protected, the spokesperson said.
The Eighmeys have been relying on bottled water for several years after they were advised their well was contaminated. Now, other nearby homeowners are being advised the same.
Protect Woodstock’s Water has sent a letter to the Town Board and met with McKenna demanding complete removal of the construction debris, a schedule for long-term monitoring, supplying bottled water to all affected neighbors and removal of the current remediation permit, all by December 31.
“Despite three years of repeated assurances from Bill McKenna, the town supervisor, that complete removal of the town contaminated construction and demolition debris from 10 Church Road was the goal, there has been no removal for almost four years,” the letter states.
“Instead, earlier this year, the town approved a permit for the ‘Plan E’ proposal for a ‘sort and sift’ operation that would remove only larger chunks while leaving the finer material in a berm still located on the property, only broadening the scope of down gradient wells at risk.”
In January 2020, the town discovered construction and demolition debris dumped at 10 Church Road came from Joseph Karolys, who has been cited by the state numerous times for illegally storing and handling the material. He now faces manslaughter charges in an unrelated case.
By summer 2020, a washout sent the debris-laden fill into the Eighmeys’ back yard and just feet from their well.
Karolys along with Vincent and Gina Conigliaro were charged with illegally dumping more than 200 truckloads of material on the property in violation of town solid waste law.
Vincent Conigliaro’s charges were dropped in exchange for his cooperation while Gina Conigliaro and Karolys were each allowed to plead guilty to one count of illegal dumping and levied a $1500 fine.
At the time, McKenna said the fine and number of counts was not the issue. The guilty pleas would allow the town to affect a full cleanup and add the cost to Conigliaro’s taxes. If he defaulted, the county would foreclose on the property and make the town whole.
Last year, the town accepted what is known as “Plan E,” which was the removal of the larger debris. In June, the DEC advised the town it had inspected the site and reviewed testing results and did not see anything that would pose a danger.
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