PROVIDENCE – A lawyer for an embattled scrapyard on the Providence riverfront is arguing the state is trying to shut down the business with a recent $25,000 environmental fine. The company is also contending the amount the city says it owes in back taxes.
Richard Nicholson, an attorney for Rhode Island Recycled Metals LLC at 434 and 444 Allens Ave., told WPRI-TV CBS 12 Tuesday that the fine that the R.I. Department of Environmental Management levied on the company on Dec. 15 was arbitrary, and the scrapyard was denied a request for an extension of time it felt was necessary given the timing around the holidays.
He said Rhode Island Recycled Metals is appealing the fine, which he described to WPRI as punitive. The state has been “relentless in trying to shut down the business.," he said.
On March 8, Providence Board of Licensing Director Stephany Lopes sent a cease-and-desist order to the business, which sits on 12 acres along the Providence River, claiming it has been doing business without a license.
Rhode Island Recycled Metals, which is still operating, had submitted an application for an auto wrecking and salvage yard license; however, Nicholson told WPRI it withdrew the application when the company was told a day before the hearing it would be denied.
Also, Nicholson added, the company has been ignoring the cease-and-desist notice because it has a state license to operate and does not need one from the city.
Another attorney, Nick Hemond, told WPRI that there is a disagreement on how much the company owes the city in back property taxes. Hemond said the company owes far less than the city estimate of $158,234.64 because, in his view, the portion of that levy was on tangible property that the company had already sold off as part of a court-ordered auction.
Currently, lawyers representing both the company and the city are in discussions to determine what the amount should be.
Rhode Island Recycled Metals has been cited by the R.I. Department of Environmental Management multiple times for problems, including missing permits, and stormwater runoff and oil leaks spilling into the river.
In 2015, state environmental officials filed a complaint in Superior Court against Rhode Island Recycled Metals, AARE – the owner of the property – and Edward Sciaba Sr., the on-site manager for Rhode Island Recycled Metals, for alleged environmental violations from the scrap metal recycling operation.
A vacant 9.8-acre lot at 338 Allens Ave., adjacent to Rhode Island Recycled Metals, was purchased by 338 Allens Avenue LLC, a company registered in Rhode Island with Jared Sevinor as agent, in April 2023.
