Attorneys for a Calverton amusement park are asking a court to dismiss a pending lawsuit after the owners pleaded guilty in Riverhead Justice Court to illegally building a go-kart track and pickleball court.
The Aug. 16 motion in Suffolk Superior Court is in response to a lawsuit the town of Riverhead filed last month seeking an injunction to stop Scott’s Pointe from operating. The town also sought a $100,000 fine and ordered the owners to dismantle the facilities, which were built without town approval.
Frederick Johs, an attorney for park owner Eric Scott, argues in his brief that the city’s complaint does not establish a valid legal claim.
City code officials first charged the company with the illegal construction in June. Johs pleaded guilty to the violations in city court on Aug. 6 and was ordered to pay $5,700, according to Assistant City Attorney Victoria Ceru.
Ceru said that amount is the maximum penalty that can be imposed at the city level.
“We have pursued them in both courts and done everything in our power,” she said, adding that the city has filed for an injunction “to make them stop doing business until they do the right thing.”
Johs and Scott did not respond to calls seeking comment this week.
Scott, who previously told Newsday that the track was built before approval, has since filed a new planning application to legalize the go-kart track, pickleball court and a second-floor party room within the facility.
Scott’s Pointe opened last fall with an indoor surfing pool, rock climbing, laser tag, axe throwing, mini golf and other activities, and earlier this summer introduced an outdoor adventure course and bumper boats in a man-made lake.
According to city planner Greg Bergman, the company had to pay $26,293 for the application, double the usual fee, because the buildings were built without permits.
Bergman said he considered the application incomplete and asked in a letter about possible batting cages, as they were not shown in the latest plans.
“I have also noted the fact that they are allegedly using motorized bumper boats on the lake,” he said, which violates permits that limit use of the lake to non-motorized recreational activities.
Scott’s Pointe risked losing tax benefits from Riverhead Industrial Development due to the violations and lack of compliance.
The company failed to make its annual payments on time, including a tax refund payment of more than $66,000, and employed fewer people than planned, according to a June 28 letter from IDA Director Tracy Stark-James.
Last year, the company received $456,369 in tax exemptions, according to a report filed with the state budget office.
A 2023 compliance report the company submitted to the Riverhead IDA showed that there were 10 full-time employees, fewer than the planned 238.
At a hearing on August 5, Alison LaPointe, an attorney for Scott at the Hauppauge-based firm Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman, said the company now employs about 65 full-time workers.
“The expansion to the full number of employees expected at the site is still delayed,” she said.
Stark-James asked the company to submit an amended application to the agency while awaiting city approvals.
“There is no way to say how long their site plan approval process will take … but as long as they show progress and initiative to comply with the regulations, everything is fine,” she said at the hearing.
Stark-James said Tuesday the outstanding PILOT amount and $9,724 in late fees have now been paid in full.
The agency approved a ten-year tax abatement for the company in 2021.
Attorneys for a Calverton amusement park are asking a court to dismiss a pending lawsuit after the owners pleaded guilty in Riverhead Justice Court to illegally building a go-kart track and pickleball court.
The Aug. 16 motion in Suffolk Superior Court is in response to a lawsuit the town of Riverhead filed last month seeking an injunction to stop Scott’s Pointe from operating. The town also sought a $100,000 fine and ordered the owners to dismantle the facilities, which were built without town approval.
Frederick Johs, an attorney for park owner Eric Scott, argues in his brief that the city’s complaint does not establish a valid legal claim.
City code officials first charged the company with the illegal construction in June. Johs pleaded guilty to the violations in city court on Aug. 6 and was ordered to pay $5,700, according to Assistant City Attorney Victoria Ceru.
Ceru said that amount is the maximum penalty that can be imposed at the city level.
“We have pursued them in both courts and done everything in our power,” she said, adding that the city has filed for an injunction “to make them stop doing business until they do the right thing.”
Johs and Scott did not respond to calls seeking comment this week.
Scott, who previously told Newsday that the track was built before approval, has since filed a new planning application to legalize the go-kart track, pickleball court and a second-floor party room within the facility.
Scott’s Pointe opened last fall with an indoor surfing pool, rock climbing, laser tag, axe throwing, mini golf and other activities, and earlier this summer introduced an outdoor adventure course and bumper boats in a man-made lake.
According to city planner Greg Bergman, the company had to pay $26,293 for the application, double the usual fee, because the buildings were built without permits.
Bergman said he considered the application incomplete and asked in a letter about possible batting cages, as they were not shown in the latest plans.
“I have also noted the fact that they are allegedly using motorized bumper boats on the lake,” he said, which violates permits that limit use of the lake to non-motorized recreational activities.
Scott’s Pointe risked losing tax benefits from Riverhead Industrial Development due to the violations and lack of compliance.
The company failed to make its annual payments on time, including a tax refund payment of more than $66,000, and employed fewer people than planned, according to a June 28 letter from IDA Director Tracy Stark-James.
Last year, the company received $456,369 in tax exemptions, according to a report filed with the state budget office.
A 2023 compliance report the company submitted to the Riverhead IDA showed that there were 10 full-time employees, fewer than the planned 238.
At a hearing on August 5, Alison LaPointe, an attorney for Scott at the Hauppauge-based firm Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman, said the company now has about 65 full-time employees.
“The expansion to the full number of employees expected at the site is still delayed,” she said.
Stark-James asked the company to submit an amended application to the agency while awaiting city approvals.
“There is no way to say how long their site plan approval process will take … but as long as they show progress and initiative to comply with the regulations, everything is fine,” she said at the hearing.
Stark-James said Tuesday the outstanding PILOT amount and $9,724 in late fees have now been paid in full.
The agency approved a ten-year tax abatement for the company in 2021.
