COMPLAINTS
“Most of the neighbors have been complaining to the city of Stamford about (how) Vitti is in operation, maybe (for) two or three hours a day.” City Rep. Jeffrey Stella, D-3, chair of the Public Safety Committee
project was in its final stages.
Three months later, little has changed.
City attorney Cynthia Anger on Thursday told representatives that, although prerequisite noise and vibration tests have been completed and comply with the established standards, there are still more steps to go. Cassone said that the city requested more information from his client to vet the noise and vibration tests completed by an independent firm.
But there are more tangible steps the company must still complete, the city argued. Vitti still must put up signage on the property that spells out hours of operations and includes a hotline where residents can make complaints against the company. The company must also set up that hotline and has to fix part of the sidewalk on Elmcroft Road as part of its agreement with the city.
"All are in the works," said Cassone this week in an email.
Once the conditions are met, and Vitti finally obtains a certificate of occupancy, the clock starts ticking on his South End site. His company can continue crushing materials on Rugby Street for "an initial period not to exceed five years commencing with the issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy for the facility."
According to the agreement, through its public hearing process, the zoning board can also extend that period in increments of up to three years.
However, while these steps are in progress, the city's enforcement capabilities are curtailed by its 2019 agreement with Vitti Construction, the board was told.
The limitations frustrated the Representatives as they debated how to deal with problems at Vitti's operations.
City Rep. Jeffrey Stella, D-3 — who chairs the Public Safety Committee — said that he's fielding complaints from residents who claim the site is operating without a certificate of occupancy. Rep. Terry Adams, whose district includes the Rugby Street property, echoed the same concerns.
"Most of the neighbors have been complaining to the city of Stamford about (how) Vitti it is in operation, maybe (for) two or three hours a day," he said.
In stark contrast, attorney Anger said the city's zoning enforcement officers did not see any violations when last inspecting the property.
Discussions then centered around who should confirm whether the company is breaching the settlement. To an extent, the city relies on tips from neighbors to catch rock crushing in action unless Stamford's zoning enforcement officer is completing an inspection.
Without the zoning officer witnessing violations on the property firsthand, the administration has no actual evidence of wrongdoing.
"I get the administration's position," Rep. Nina Sherwood, D-8, said. "We have to catch them red-handed doing something in order for us to be able to shut them down. But I don't see the administration actively trying to do that.
"What frustrates me is that we are a city government," she continued. "And the city government is operational ... to organize city business, but also protect the people of the city."
Stella pitched putting up surveillance cameras on the property. Sherwood floated a resolution for the committee's next meeting asking city departments to devote more resources to the matter, something that Rep. Jeff Curtis, D-14, backed.
After more than an hour of discussions, the committee resolved to move forward on the resolution and compel the city to act, regardless of the cost.
"Let's get this thing done," said Curtis. "Enough is enough."