DERBY – City officials allegedly allowed a food truck to operate on private property in violation of zoning regulations, creating a neighborhood mess that has spilled over into the city’s zoning board of appeals.
Larry’s Landing, a popular food truck, operated at 285 Roosevelt Drive from about 2022 until December 2025, according to the business’ Facebook page.
The land at 285 Roosevelt Drive is zoned residential. It is owned by Edward Larson, an Oxford resident who also owns a multi-family house at the same address, according to the tax assessor data. He rented the land to the food truck, according to statements made at the April 23 meeting of the Derby Zoning Board of Appeals.
Derby’s R-5 zoning does not list anything remotely close to food trucks being allowed into the residential zone.
So how did a business end up operating there?
“Four years ago, things were different,” said Kevin White, Derby’s zoning enforcement officer. “There was a different administration, a different planning and zoning (commission).”
White made his statements to Sam Pollastro, Jr., Derby ZBA chairman. Pollastro was asking about how Larry’s Landing ended up at the property.
Pollastro said the land use rules were the same in 2022 as they are in 2026, regardless of who is in Derby City Hall or on any commission.
“I’m not going to debate whether it was or wasn’t,” White said in response. “The decision was made to issue the vending permit, and it was.”
Watch the exchange below, and the article continues after the video.
Why This Matters
The property at 285 Roosevelt Drive was in front of the ZBA because a new food truck business is looking to move in.
White described the residential property as a pre-existing nonconforming use (grandfathered).
However, the food truck use was lost because there was a lull between when Larry’s Landing left and when the new food truck operator arrived.
White apparently told the new owner the commercial use is no longer allowed, so the business appealed White’s decision to the ZBA.
Neighbors were notified of the meeting, as required by Connecticut law.
‘Who Wasn’t Doing Their Job?’
Several neighbors wrote letters or testified in person April 23 with a clear message for the ZBA — no more food trucks in the residential zone.
They said having a food truck as a neighbor brought noise, bright lights, portable toilets, odors, early-morning garbage trucks and loud music during bike nights. Neighbors also pointed out the business had expanded to include an ice cream truck. Someone added storage containers to the property, too.
Derby just went through a revaluation that saw property assessments increase by 60 percent on average. Neighbors questioned whether their assessments were accurate, given the fact the revaluation did not factor in the fact a residential property being used commercially.
Others questioned whether the property owner at 285 Roosevelt Drive was getting taxed appropriately, since the commercial use doesn’t show up on the tax assessor’s property card.
They also pointed to large garbage containers on a separate lot next to the food truck property. Those containers, they said, were being used by the small commercial center across Roosevelt Drive, home to a marina, a deli, and a hair salon.
They were especially peeved that no one seemed to have a clear answer as to why the city allowed the business to move in even though it was against land use regulations.
“To me it feels like Larry’s Landing was established, and no one knew it,” said neighbor John Netto. “How did it get this far and what brought it to light? Who wasn’t doing their job?”
“The property is zoned residential and should not be allowed to operate as a business or commercial area,” said neighbor Linda Casini.
“I’m all for small business but that’s not the right spot. Enough is enough,” neighbor Duane Harlow said.
Meagan Camara lives behind 285 Roosevelt Drive. She said trees on her property were removed thanks to the improper use.
Camara and others complained about lights from the property. Camara said she had to purchase blackout shades for her son’s room because the light was shining through his window all night.
The neighbors said while they support small businesses, it shouldn’t come at the sacrifice of residential homes.
“Many of us felt we had no real voice,” Camara said.
About six people spoke at the meeting against the use. An additional letter was received in opposition.
Potential Tenant Speaks
About five people spoke in favor of the food truck. That count includes the two new potential owners and the previous owner. One business wrote a letter of support.
Stuck in the middle April 23 was Litzamara Rangel, of Stratford.
She operates a food truck with her family in Stratford, and was looking forward to opening up on Roosevelt Drive.
She appealed to the ZBA, saying she would follow whatever rules the city lays down in order for her to operate.
Her written appeal to the ZBA noted there is adequate parking on site, along with many non-residential uses nearby.
Rangel wrote that “strictly enforcing the zoning rule would prevent a reasonable and practical use of the property.”
Several neighbors said there are many spaces in Derby where the zoning allows food trucks – such as the area just down Roosevelt Drive where Bad Sons Brewery operates.
Cheri Pirritino, Larry’s Landing owner, said the situation was sad because the people complaining had frequented the food truck.
Get The Lawyers
The ZBA did not take action on Rangel’s appeal April 23. Instead they opted to continue the hearing until their next meeting, scheduled for 6:30 p.m. May 21.
Pollastro, the ZBA chairman, said a city lawyer will be present at that meeting.
A lawyer could straighten out whether the property is a nonconforming pre-existing use.
That term was used by White, Pollastro, and Gino DiGiovanni, Jr., the chairman of the Derby Town Republican Committee who was previously a Second Ward Alderman and chairman of the Derby Planning and Zoning Commission.
DiGiovanni said the food truck was a grandfathered use because the property had previously been used as a parking lot by commercial businesses on the opposite side of Roosevelt Drive.
However, Marc Garofalo, the town clerk and former mayor, said the property is not a pre-existing nonconforming use.
“They are residential lots,” Garofalo said.
Generally speaking, nonconforming uses are uses that were legal at the time they started, but later came into conflict as zoning regulations changed, according to state law.
The use cannot change or expand. Once the use stops, the underlying zoning takes control – in this case, residential zoning.
A resident pointed out a property being used as a parking lot is not the same use as a food truck.
A public records search shows that the Derby Board of Aldermen and Alderwomen approved the vendor’s license for Larry’s Landing, which means the business was operating with the full knowledge of city officials and the health department.
Garofalo’s office issues vendor permits after they are approved by the Alders.
However, whether a use complies with land use regulations is usually the jurisdiction of the building inspector or zoning enforcement officer.
The Neighborhood
The Park Avenue and Roosevelt Drive corridor has somewhat complicated zoning.
The north side of Park Avenue is residential all the way from Cedric Avenue east to North Avenue.
The south side of Park Avenue is residential from Cedric Avenue to D Street, and then it becomes the “Mill Design District” zone, where non-residential uses like gas stations and breweries are allowed.
The north side of Roosevelt Drive is residential from Cedric Avenue to just past E Street. It becomes non-residential continuing east toward downtown Derby.
The south side of Roosevelt Drive, along the Housatonic River, is non-residential.
Derby has a mixed record when it comes to protecting residential zones on Park Avenue.
Neighbors came out in force to public meetings around 2015 when rumors spread about the Dew Drop Inn wanting to build a structure in a parking lot near the business. The parking lot is in a residential zone, and neighbors insisted the residential zone be protected.
Jason Carlucci, the Dew Drop owner, put in writing and testified at city meetings that the business only wanted to use the parking lot for parking, which resolved the rumors.
However, the city allowed a parking lot on Park Avenue in the area of D Street to be used for industrial storage — which includes everything from tractor-trailer cabs to construction culverts – even though that parking lot is in the residential zone.