Neighbors urge Somers to seek injunction over alleged commercial processing in residential zone

Residents and neighbors pressed the Somers Board of Selectmen on June 4 to act against what they described as an ongoing, unpermitted commercial earth‑processing operation in an A‑1 residential zone at 7 and 47 Old Hampton Road.

At public comment, Sean Curtis, a resident and immediate neighbor, said the site has been operating since late 2024 and repeatedly violated the conditions of a recorded special‑use permit. "This is a residential A1 zone," Curtis said. "What my neighbors and I are watching unfold and have watched unfold since October 2024 is a commercial earth processing operation in a residential neighborhood that is not what was approved." He said the operation involved processing equipment, a large stockpile of mixed waste materials, and a created parking area large enough for numerous heavy trucks.

Curtis summarized enforcement history as he understands it: a cease‑and‑desist was issued July 10, 2025; processing continued; the town’s own site visit photos documented violations; and a later cease‑and‑desist issued May 21, 2026 was still in effect. He said the site now exceeds the permit’s stated limit on open area (the permit states "At no time shall more than one undivided area...exceed 3 acres in size"), and he alleged more than seven acres were open at one point, with no erosion control measures and a risk of runoff to Thrasher Brook. Curtis cited the permit conditions, a recorded bond of $124,000 he said secured inspections, and the town’s zoning regulation citation (section 214‑8.4) as the basis for his concerns.

Curtis urged the selectmen to direct the town attorney to seek immediate injunctive relief under Connecticut General Statutes Section 8‑12 to halt the unpermitted commercial operations and pursue civil penalties. "As the town's executive authority, you can direct the town attorney to go to court and seek an injunction," he told the board.

Board members acknowledged the comments and thanked Curtis and other speakers, but there was no formal motion on the record at this meeting to send the matter to the town attorney. Earlier in the evening another resident, Kevin Barau, had asked the board for clearer written enforcement procedures and a publicly accessible portal to log zoning complaints and follow‑up, saying that better processes would improve consistency and fairness in enforcement.

The Planning and Zoning Commission and the town’s land‑use staff were also referenced in speakers’ accounts: residents said an application to modify the special‑use permit had been submitted to the commission while active enforcement orders were outstanding, and that the commission had been advised the matter should be heard in a public hearing.

What happens next: residents asked the Board of Selectmen to take explicit action to seek injunctive relief and civil penalties; the board heard the request but did not record a directive to the town attorney during this meeting. Any formal legal action would require a board instruction to the town attorney or a separate legal filing.

Authorities referenced in public comment included Connecticut General Statutes Section 8‑12 and Somers zoning regulation language (special‑use permit provisions cited as section 214‑8.4 by speakers).