"Taghkanic's Zoning Board of Appeals voted three (James Romaine, Robert Rochler, and Tom Kiely) to one (Moisha Blechman) that the Wilzig 'sporting course' is a permitted recreational use, giving Mr. Wilzig, as far as the Town is concerned, permission to pave and use his racetrack—except for the temporary restraining order currently in place.

"Our efforts have failed to persuade town officials that a professional-grade racetrack is out-of-scale and not permitted, in spite of earlier determinations by New York State's Supreme Court concerning Mr. Wilzig's original application for the identical racetrack as an 'accessory use' to his residence.

"For reasons which often defy logic and common sense, the majority of Taghkanic's town officials—many of whom were appointed after the 2007 election—have chosen to accommodate and even welcome Mr. Wilzig's construction of his racetrack; they have accepted his attorney's representations of his intended use of the racetrack, this in spite of the obvious establishment of a massive multi-sports complex on his property. While one official chose to call it 'beautiful,' the vast majority of those who wrote to town officials and who spoke at the public hearings objected to the project.

"On the Granger Group's website, we recently published audio recordings of the entire ZBA meeting regarding the Wilzig appeal. We hope that the public will listen to them and judge for themselves if the citizens of this town are being well-served by the Zoning Board of Appeal's decision. It is clear that ALL of the citizens of Taghkanic are ill-served when they cannot rely on their town officials to protect their interests and are forced to spend their own money and time to get the town to do the right thing.

"Our thanks go out to the hundreds of households in Taghkanic who responded to our calls to action, to the many who spoke at the two public hearings, and who signed our online petition. We will update our website regularly with news of our litigation, as the courts are now our only recourse. This battle is far from over."

ccSCOOP ARTICLES ABOUT THE WILZIG TRACK ISSUE

"Wilzig Track Clears ZBA, but Matter Remains in Court" - May 20, 2009

"Another Round in Court for Wilzig Proposal" - May 4, 2009

"Residents Make Their Appeal to the Taghkanic Zoning Board of Appeals" - April 22, 2009

"Taghkanic Track Debate Shifts to ZBA Following Planning Board OK" - April 15, 2009

"Yet Another Taghkanic Panel to Hear from Public on Wilzig Proposal" - April 7, 2009

"Wilzig Proposal May Be Decided on Next Month" - March 12, 2009

"Wilzig Paving Plan Revs Up Opposition" - February 10, 2009

"Wilzig Asphalt Track Resurfaces" - December 10, 2008