Calverton

Riverhead Town has ordered the owner of Patriot Recycling to remove 3,000 cubic yards of materials from Youngs Avenue preserved farmland where it plans composting operations.

Riverhead Town will require an in-depth environmental review of a proposed motocross track on River Road in Calverton, where a developer plans to excavate sand and soil from prime agricultural land.

For the second time in two years, fire destroyed a home at 1535 Middle Road in Calverton early this morning.

A public hearing on a proposed subdivision and mixed-use development of roughly 16 acres of vacant land on Middle Country Country Road in Calverton is scheduled for Sept. 4 at 6 p.m.

Riverhead Town has not revoked Patriot's use permit, but has sent the owner a letter prohibiting deliveries of yard trimmings to the site until active farming begins, Riverhead Town Attorney Erik Howard said.

The fire investigation is completed but investigations by the State Department of Environmental Conservation and Suffolk County health department will continue, the Riverhead fire marshal says.

A Patriot Recycling truck carrying materials entered the former Warner Nursery site on Youngs Avenue this afternoon, in spite of the posted stop-work order on the fence at the entrance, prompting a visit from Riverhead Police. 

The town says the composting operation— which has drawn numerous complaints about odors and truck traffic — violates town code because there is no active farming taking place at the site.

An Oceanside solid waste facility is moving its composting operation to Calverton because of odor control issues at its Nassau County site. Calverton residents are angry, complaining about a stench they say arrived after dumping in a local farm field began.

We can’t let this week go by without expressing deep gratitude for the first responders from across the region who fought the massive fire at Crown Recycling in Calverton June 4. But questions remain about what went up in flames at the plant this week and the impacts that had on first responders and surrounding residents.