Lynden files complaints on water meeting site
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James Lynden has filed code violation complaints about the village of Fredonia's July water project informational meeting.
The former Fredonia trustee has become one of Village Hall's stiffest critics since getting voted out of office, and found another avenue of dissent with the July event held at the town of Pomfret's new hall. The former church has not been renovated yet, and Lynden sent a letter to the village detailing his calls for an investigation into use of the building for the water session.
Lynden asked for his letter to get read out at a Board of Trustees meeting, and Treasurer Erlyssa LeBeau did so.
Lynden wrote he filed a complaint about the July event with five separate state authorities and offices, along with the U.S. Department of Justice. "This filing documents a coordinated circumvention of the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code and Title 2 of the Americans With Disabilities Act," he stated.
"By co-hosting and directing village residents into an unaltered, uncertified church building, this administration acted in violation of existing (state) building code ... which strictly prohibits public assembly used prior to the formal issuance of a certificate of compliance and created an immediate safety risk by operating the venue without a legally calculated or posted occupant load sign," Lynden continued.
"Furthermore, because this board possessed prior knowledge of this facility's outstanding handicap accessibility and bathroom deficiencies, as recorded in public hearing minutes, staging a civic meeting at this location violates (state law) and federally protected civil rights," Lynden alleged.
He added, "The assertion by local officials that the building was exempt because it is not in use yet is legally incorrect. A building undergoes a change of occupancy the exact moment its doors open for a new public function. Verbal clearances from local staff cannot override state building codes, nor do they shield this village from severe liability or invalidation of municipal insurance policies."
Lynden even claimed knowingly violating the building code is a class A misdemeanor.
He stated that his letter constituted a formal notification of the investigations to the village.