Partial Dismissal of Claims in Mt. Kisco Atomic Bomb Material Site Lawsuit
A federal court judge has dismissed some of the claims against the Village of Mount Kisco regarding the commercial building at 105 Kisco Ave. that once housed hazardous materials used to make the first American atomic bomb.
A lawsuit filed in federal court in White Plains more than two years ago alleged the former owner of the building failed to disclose the site had previously contained the materials.
Mark Stagg, the current majority owner of the property, is suing 11 defendants, including Pound Ridge resident Paul Carozza, the previous owner of the site. Stagg is also suing the village, the Westchester County Department of Health, the federal government and six companies. Carozza and his partner, the late George Griffin Jr., who was a longtime village trustee, operated Richard’s Lumber & Building Materials Center from 1980 to 2012 at the site.
Last month Federal District Judge Nelson Roman made several rulings. He dismissed some of the claims against the county Health Department, Carozza and Merritt Environmental Consulting Corp. Roman dismissed all claims against Teledyne/Environmental Inc. and the Mount Kisco Urban Renewal Agency, which purchased the property in 1966 and rehabilitated it, which included the demolition of the property’s uranium refinery.
Both the plaintiff and the village claimed victory in the judge’s ruling.
Andrew Kazin, an attorney representing Stagg, said he was moving forward with the discovery process in the lawsuit. Because some of the claims remained intact, his client could seek cleanup costs under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, he said.
The village had sought to withhold information about the uranium refinery’s demolition. However, since the matter involving potential cleanup costs at the site is still an issue, Kazin said he will ask the village to turn over all documents relating to the property.
But Mount Kisco Village Attorney Whitney Singleton said Monday he was “very happy about the decision.”
Singleton said the remaining claims against the village that were not struck down by the judge could be dismissed because the statute of limitations has expired, including issues dating back more than 50 years.
Roman ruled the plaintiffs have an Apr. 29 deadline to file an amended complaint for the claims that weren’t dismissed. The defendants will have until May 29 to respond to that complaint.
The civil action, according to court papers filed on Feb. 3, 2015, from Mount Kisco Associates LLC, sought a reported $3.2 million. Stagg is also seeking to end his operating agreement “due solely to the massive fraud” of Carozza about the “radioactive property,” according to the court documents.
