The Tennessee Department of Conservation Division of Water Resources is fining Chattanooga-based Ethan Collier Construction Co. $39,640 for violations of the Water Quality Control Act at the Kelly’s Ferry Hideaway neighborhood in Lookout Valley, according to a director’s order issued by the division.
Ernie Freistat, the company’s vice president of construction, requested an appeal to the order in an email sent Oct. 9, stating fines were not mentioned in any of the four notifications of violations issued to the company for failing to install or maintain erosion and sediment control at the site.
“We respectfully express our concern that these fines appear to have been assessed retroactively and without prior notice or explanation of the basis for calculation,” Freistat said in the appeal letter. “It is our position that if penalties were warranted, they should have been issued at the time each NOV was issued, allowing us the opportunity to respond accordingly.”
Freistat and Ethan Collier did not return phone calls Monday. Collier is chair of the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Commission.
On July 29, 2024, Water Resources Division officials conducted an inspection of the site at 4509 Kelly’s Ferry Road in response to a complaint. They observed active land disturbance of an area larger than 1 acre, which requires a permit that had not been obtained, the order states.