Battaglia Demolition owner to be put behind bars

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — The owner of a shuttered demolition business in Buffalo has been ordered to report to jail at the beginning of next month.

Residents spent years trying to get Peter Battaglia, the owner of Battaglia Demolition, to clean up his site, but it never happened.

The former site of Battaglia Demolition at 1037 Seneca St. in the Seneca-Babcock neighborhood has been an ongoing battle since 2016 -- that's when the state flagged Battaglia for operating without the required environmental permits.

The site has been shut down, but neighbors said the problem isn't solved with this ruling.

“I'm kind of sad that it came to these terms because we were willing to work with him,” said Jack Wagner, a resident of the Seneca Babcock neighborhood for 64 years.

Before being flagged for operating without required environmental permits, neighbors directly behind the site on Peabody Street complained about the horrible living conditions for years.

“We still need it cleaned up, we’re still living with the rats, we're still living with the silica dust, with the concrete back there," said Peabody Street resident Diane Lemanski. "You can see how tall the grass is. He hasn't been back there since before he got shut down in 2018."

The complaints and court battles led to a state supreme court judge ordering Battaglia to shut down operations in 2018 and clean up the site to avoid $20 million in penalties.

Three years later, a fire broke out at the site, causing $300,000 in damage, leading the city to demolish the area. Buffalo Common Council Member Bryan Bollman, whose district the site falls in, said these factors added even more health hazards to the surrounding homes.  

“All they want is a better quality of life. Living next to this dump site has created so many environmental issues for them," Bollman said. "I'm glad to see that a ruling was made."

A court document revealed that Battaglia said he doesn't have the money to remove the material, resulting in a contempt ruling.

Consequently, he is facing a six-month jail sentence and must return to court on Aug. 1.

“If you're going to go to jail for six months, we'll see you in six months, but you still have to clean up your property," Wagner said. "This still has to be attended to."

A warrant for his arrest will be issued if he doesn't appear.

“It is somewhat closure, but not enough closure. We need the last final step of the cleanup,” Lemanski said. 

“Glad to see that it's being taken seriously," Bollman said. "We need justice for these residents."

Bollman said Battaglia owns more property in the neighborhood similar to the boarded up house and vacant lot on Peabody Street.

The only reason it isn't overgrown: the neighbors.

“My brother pays somebody every week to cut that grass," Lemanski said. "Even though he's not here physically, he's here in name and he's harming us."

Councilman Bollman said the next steps are to see if Battaglia will turn himself in come Aug. 1.

The proposed settlement doesn't allow any future industrial use for the property, but it does fall on the shoulders of the City of Buffalo to figure out when clean up can begin, he said.