Spring Valley Fire Inspector files complaint with NYS Attorney General

An employee of the village of Spring Valley has filed a complaint with New York State Attorney General Letitia James accusing that Village Trustees of mismanagement.

In a letter dated January 16, 2024 Frank Youngman, a part time Fire Inspector for Spring Valley, characterized Village Trustees as negligent in the upkeep of village facilities and stated that his professional concerns and recommendations have been ignored to the detriment of the community. Youngman outlines a number of issues with village’s current polices, first and foremost their stance on development.

“The Zoning board and planning boards allow everything to be passed,” wrote Youngman, who alleged that the board has approved projects without the input of the Fire Inspectors office and in defiance of local building codes.

Youngman expressed alarm at that an ever increasing number of single family homes within Spring Valley are being torn and replaced with multifamily residences and frankly stated that the villages existing infrastructure, in his evaluation, is failing to keep pace with increased residency.

“The Rockland County Sewer District is in the village on a daily basis” wrote Youngman, who explained that the ballooning population of Spring Valley has caused constant blockage of sewage lines.

The fire inspector alleges that the Village Board has repeatedly approved project applications that were initially denied by the Building Department for there failure to adhere to local building codes and that these larger scale projects are overstressing Spring Valley’s sewage system and creating a growing traffic problem..

Youngman expressed further frustration Spring Valley’s Public Works Department has no money to update a fleet of plow trucks that consists of decades old vehicles and that the DPW facility itself is in need of roof replacements due to mold.

Apprehension about the state of the village and Youngman’s complaints specifically have lead to the formation, of Rockland County Concerned Citizens, an organization comprised of village residents seeking to address the problems facing Spring Valley and demand progress from the Village Board.

The Spring Valley Board of Trutees did not respond to the RCT’s request for comment on Youngman’s complaints at time of publication.