A dispute about a tree-service business operating in a residential area in Catoosa County, Ga., may be headed to court, depending on a vote by the Catoosa County Commission.
Catoosa County commissioners have asked county attorneys to add an item to the Nov. 2 meeting agenda, allowing the board to vote on whether to sue ASAP Tree Service as a public nuisance.
Residents from Dietz Road have attended the last two commission meetings, complaining about the noise and traffic caused by the tree service’s heavy equipment.
Neighbors say the noise has lasted more than eight hours a day for six or seven days a week. Wayne Dunn, who lives next door to the operation, said it’s so loud his wife can’t sit on their deck and talk on the telephone.
“We’re not trying to run him out of business; we just want him to move to a suitable location,” said Dunn, who estimated that the noise and high metal fence erected to reduce it may have cut the value of his property by 25 percent.
Craig Burchfield, who owns ASAP, said the complaints are trumped up because of a property line dispute with his neighbor Martha King.
“I’m being harassed is what it is,” he said. “I’ve been here six years and every time zoning [officials have] been by, I have complied with what they’ve said.”
King acknowledged the dispute but said the noise is her only concern.
The company takes trees cut down elsewhere, brings them to the ASAP site and processes them by turning them into wood chips or cutting them into logs. Stacks of firelogs are on the ASAP property.
Richard DeMerritt, who works for Burchfield, said he can’t see why people are trying to shut down his boss.
“With the economy the way it is, I don’t understand why somebody’s trying to put somebody out of business,” DeMerritt said. “He’s trying to do right.”
DeMerritt operates the wood splitter and other equipment on site during the day and explained that Burchfield has reduced his shifts from eight hours a day to four hours to comply with the county’s wishes.
Burchfield said he was not even aware of a noise problem until the complaints at a commission meeting a month ago. After that meeting, the county required him to build a solid metal wall around the property to limit the noise and he went so far as to buy material that matched the barn in Dunn’s backyard.
“I’m just wanting to stay in business,” he said.
County Manager Mike Helton said a stop-work order was issued for Burchfield and he was given a list of about five things he had to do to comply with ordinances, including erecting the metal wall around the property.
When Burchfield complied, the stop-work order no longer applied and the business could crank up again, Helton said.
Richard DeMerritt, who works for Burchfield, said he can’t see why people are trying to shut down his boss.
“With the economy the way it is, I don’t understand why somebody’s trying to put somebody out of business,” said DeMerritt. “He’s trying to do right.”
DeMerritt operates the wood splitter and other equipment on site during the day and explained that Burchfield had reduced his shifts from eight hours a day to four hours to comply with the county’s wishes.
Neighbors, including King, say the noise has died down with media attention, but they expect things to crank back up once the issue cools down.
“All we want is for him to take his business where it belongs,” said King. “This is not a business area.”
Commissioner Bobby Winters, who represents the area around the business and lives up the road, said he was shocked to hear the noise and will support anything the county can do to stop it.
“Nobody wants to put him out of business, but it’s tough to bring those heavy trucks up in the houses,” Winters said.
Jeff Hutchins, who lives across the street from Burchfield, said he has seen more employees at the site than are allowed by the ordinance. He said the operation cleans up its act when county officials are around.
“He may meet it when they’re here, but he doesn’t two minutes after they’re gone,” he said.
He said any residents with complaints should call the county zoning office at 706-965-3787.
Burchfield said some of his neighbors operated businesses out of their homes and he doesn’t see why his is different.
“There’s two sides to every story,” he said.
Helton said the county had “many ordinances that need work” and officials are in the process of “tweaking” the home-business regulations.
Existing businesses such as ASAP would be grandfathered in and exempt from changes, which is why the commission has decided to vote on civil action and sue ASAP for being a public nuisance, according to County Attorney Skip Patty.