Patriot Recycling ordered to remove all debris at Calverton site

Patriot Recycling must remove all debris dumped at the former Warner Nursery property on Youngs Avenue in Calverton by Sept. 29. Otherwise, they face immediate enforcement action, civil penalties up to $2,000 daily and potential Supreme Court action by Riverhead Town.

The Riverhead town attorney’s office issued a letter to Joseph DeFigueroa on Aug. 29 demanding the immediate removal of unauthorized materials from the site. Mr. DeFigueroa runs Youngs Avenue LLC and owns the Oceanside-based waste-recycling facility and transfer station Patriot Recycling LLC.

A stop work order was issued in June ordering Youngs Avenue LLC to cease operation of its dump site after residents complained of an overwhelming odor spreading through their neighborhood. They also claimed to be experiencing an array of health problems as a result of the smell. At the time, Riverhead Town code enforcement found Young Avenue LLC in violation of town codes for the alleged “use of the property as a storage facility for mulch/yard waste with no active farming being done.”

Due to the stockpiling of mulch and related organic material, Youngs Avenue LLC must “immediately commence removal of all mulch, wood debris, and any related stockpiled material from the property to a duly licensed and permitted facility” by Sept. 29, letter read.

The owner must provide the town written proof of compliance, including disposal manifests and receipts identifying the destination facility, within five days of removal. As of press time, it is unclear if there is alternative facility to which Patriot Recycling is transporting materials.

Some community members claimed to have seen Patriot Recycling trucks bringing materials to Sandlot LLC on Cox Lane in Cutchogue. The operator of this site denied this claim and told the Riverhead News-Review in an email that Sandlot has not taken in debris from the Riverhead site. They “cannot take in unprocessed materials,” they said, only clean, DEC-tested materials.

A representative of the DEC said in an email that Patriot Recycling “may send yard trimmings to a facility authorized through exemption, registration, or permit to receive this material.” Sandlot LLC in Cutchogue is authorized to receive up to 3,000 cubic yards of yard trimmings annually and store up to 3,000 cubic yards total.

“The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is unaware of Patriot sending yard trimmings to Sandlot, or commencing cleanup, as of Sept. 15, 2025,” the DEC stated. The Riverhead News-Review reached out to Patriot Recycling for information, but did not receive a response by press time.

Youngs Avenue LLC was due in Riverhead Town Justice Court on Sept. 9, but neither Mr. DeFigueroa or his attorney, Steven Losquadro, appeared before the judge. Mr. Losquadro did not return a request for comment by press time.

During the short court conference, the Hon. Lori Hulse made note of the pile of paperwork presented to her, which consisted of letters from concerned residents.

“That was all of our paperwork that we collected and submitted, and so I was very happy to see that,” said Toqui Terchun, president of the Greater Calverton Civic Association.

Although it was disappointing that the property owner did not show, Ms. Terchun said, the acknowledgement of the filed paperwork is a testament to the seriousness of the issue and the community’s dedication to holding Patriot Recycling accountable.

“We’re not going to leave this up to the judge and the assistant town attorney [Victoria Pilo] to create the case and weigh the case,” Ms. Terchun said.

Claudette Bianco of Baiting Hollow was among the residents who helped with the paperwork compilation. She submitted her own letter to Riverhead Justice Court ahead of the scheduled arraignment, in which she expressed the misinformation circulating around the foul odors coming from the next-door Crown Recycling facility.

“Nothing could be further from the truth; the odors were there prior to the Crown fire,” Ms. Bianco wrote. “I urge the court to punish this company to the maximum penalty the law will allow. Patriot’s continued illegal activities have caused extreme distress and injury to the neighbors of this serial violator.”

Ms. Terchun asked about testing of the site at a Sept. 3 Town Board meeting, as residents were worried about the potential impact to the air, water and soil in the area. The Suffolk County Department of Health visited the Patriot property in July, but “did not see anything that they thought merited sampling,” said Riverhead town attorney Erik Howard.

The DEC also inspected the piles during the same visit, Mr. Howard said. The state agency reported that the composition of the material is within the around 0.5% limit of allowable non-organic material in the piles. However, Patriot Recycling did exceed its permitted 3,000 cubic yards of trimming by 100 cubic yards.

The next court appearance for Patriot Recycling is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 7, at 2 p.m. in Riverhead Town Justice Court.