Village board resolves non-issue with Busty’s

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By PJ Ferguson

The September meeting of the Whitehall Village Board led to some confusion between the board and Busty’s Brew and BBQ owner Joe Kelly and its property owner Jared Mowatt.

After receiving a permit from the village, Kelley recently filled in the land behind Busty’s that resulted in a violation of code. Or so the village board thought.

Village trustee Teresa Austin said that chief water plant operator George Rockenstire reported that electrical lines were found to be running too close to the ground behind Busty’s. In a note from Rockenstire, Austin read that Mowatt refused to pay the $4,555 price tag to bring the grounds back up to code and requested that it would be the village’s responsibility, and next time he would cover the costs.

“No, not next time, right now,” retorted Mayor Phil Smith, with unison agreement from the board that the village would not be paying to bring the property back up to code. “This is a hazard they created.”