Property owner concerned development harming lake

Staff Writer

By CLAre m. Masi

Property owner concerned
development harming lake

JACKSON — Steve Kitay grew up in Jackson surrounded by the nature he so loves. Living on the 28-acre farm his parents bought on County Line Road in the early 1950s laid the groundwork and sparked the vision that would one day become his dream.

The dream, which he realized 16 years ago, was to build a house next to a lake near the home of his youth. Now he feels that dream is in jeopardy.

For the last 16 years, Kitay has watched his dream materialize brick by brick. Kitay’s 15-acre property next to his boyhood home is open, beautiful and very special.

Not only does the lake in the backyard contribute to the pastoral setting and bucolic scenery of the town itself, but it also provides annual picnics, parties and is the playground for various events held by area organizations.

Today, Kitay is worried about the safety of his lake and the wildlife that inhabits it. He claims Bel Air Estates, a housing development being built on Hyson Road directly behind his land, is responsible for wreaking havoc on his lake and in his lake.

He said runoff water from the excavation work being done by builder Benjamin Kirsch is draining into the stream that feeds his lake. The results, according to Kitay, are fish which are lethargic with no pigment and a film covering their eyes; brown, murky-looking water instead of clear, blue-green water; and, on a hot day, a huge algae bloom that covers sections of the once-clear lake.

Kitay said that in a meeting last fall, Kirsch asked him to be patient and said the problem would be rectified by January or February 2001. Meanwhile, Kitay was busy trying to find ways to reverse what he saw happening to his lake. He said he did receive some assistance from representatives of the Ocean County Soil Conser-vation District who came to evaluate the lake. He said the agency did not find the lake to be a safety or a health hazard to the community at this time.

The soil conservation district officials prepared a report for Kitay which informed him of the chemicals he can use to clean out the lake. Kitay said he’s reluctant to take that advice as the final word on the matter.

Kitay said the body of water is a branch of the Metedeconk River, which eventually ends up in Brick Township drinking water. He said he wants to see his lake cleaned up and restocked with fish.

Mayor Joseph Grisanti said it appears Kirsch built a detention basin in accordance with the approved plan for Bel Air Estates.

"Our engineers are going to try to reach out to Mr. Kirsch and see if we can resolve this problem. We are still investigating Mr. Kitay’s concerns," the mayor said.

In a recent conversation with Kitay, the homeowner stated that Gregory Valesi, Jackson’s township engineer, sent a letter dated Aug. 1 to Kirsch stating that he knew Kirsch was aware of the drainage problem related to Bel-Air Estates.

The letter advised Kirsch that a downstream pond owned by Kitay had been experiencing siltation and poor water quality. The letter stated, "our office has determined this to be a result of the construction activities of your subdivision."

Valesi said his office and the Ocean County Soil Conservation District agreed that a sediment basin should be immediately installed within the proposed detention basin. The township engineer’s office is also requesting that the sediment basin design be performed and submitted to his office and that implementation occur immediately afterward.

In a conversation with Kirsch, the builder told the Tri-Town News he was working with Kitay and the soil conservation district to minimize the off-site silt. Kirsch said the situation has improved dramatically over the last six months. He said he has made modifications to satisfy the soil conservation district’s requirements.