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Residents accuse Daniels Excavating of unpermitted development; township says enforcement underway
Summary
Residents told the Salem Township Board that Daniels Excavating began land development on Route 819 in 2020 without required land-development filings or Highway Occupancy permits; the solicitor said enforcement is underway and the company has been cooperative, while neighbors raised safety and notification concerns.
Several Salem Township residents used the Old Business portion of the July 17 meeting to press the board about land development they say began on Route 819 in 2020 without required land-development filings or permits.
Resident Lisa Sagina said the development by Daniels Excavating began without submitting required applications and alleged delayed notice to adjacent property owners. "Ignorance of the law or bad advice is no excuse," Sagina told the board and questioned whether township officials had discussed the project in public meetings before work began.
Solicitor Falatovich responded that the situation is an enforcement matter and said the company has been cooperative. Supervisor Bob Zundel disclosed a long-term acquaintance with the Daniels family, saying he has been friends with the family for 35–40 years; he and the solicitor indicated there were no prior public meetings on the matter. Board members confirmed they had seen development activity, and Kerry Jobe said staff-level discussions had occurred in the past but that no formal public process had been completed.
Neighbors raised safety and procedural concerns. Matt Humes, who owns property at Kennan Road and Route 819, said sight-distance and driveway location are already dangerous and asked whether the proposed access would be across from Kennan Road. Ron Muir, an adjacent property owner, said the noise has disproportionately affected him and provided the board with a copy of Pennsylvania nuisance law for review.
Sagina also played a voicemail dated July 1 from PennDOT that, she said, indicated the township is responsible for trimming brush and maintaining sight distances for township roads intersecting Route 819.
At the meeting the solicitor said the township is pursuing compliance; no stop-work order was mentioned in the minutes. Residents asked for stronger enforcement tools and suggested changes to local subdivision and land-development ordinance (SALDO) language and penalties to prevent recurrence. The board did not take a separate formal vote on enforcement at the July 17 meeting.
The board will continue to address the issue through staff and solicitor follow-up; residents asked that actions and any enforcement steps be reported back in a public meeting.
