TONAWANDA, N.Y. - Amigone Funeral Home and the State Attorney General's Office are set to face each other in court Tuesday in a battle over the re-opening of a crematory in a residential neighborhood.
The hearing and motion were originally scheduled for last April before a postponement. The State Attorney General's Office is seeking a preliminary injunction against Amigone, claiming the re-opening of the crematory on Sheridan Drive would violate the New York Department of Environmental Conservation's air quality standards. Before the facility shut down in 2012, neighbors had complained of unbearable smells and noises for decades.
According to court documents, the state will argue in court that Amigone must apply for a state permit and work under those standards before it could ever re-open that crematory.
Gary Jackson, who moved to this neighborhood behind the crematory about five years ago, has joined forces with a number of his neighbors, local politicians and the Clean Air Coalition to block Amigone's attempts to re-open the facility.
He recalled what the neighborhood was like before the crematory shut down in 2012.
"It stunk. It was horrible," Jackson said. "You had to literally get inside your house and you couldn't open your windows during the summer."
The court hearing is scheduled for 3 p.m.