LAKEVILLE — Work to remove oil-contaminated soil at the Holley Place affordable housing site began last week, prompting complaints from nearby residents about petroleum fumes and a lack of notice.
The cleanup at 11 Holley St. follows a construction halt in July after crews digging the foundation detected the smell of heating oil.
The Salisbury Housing Committee, a private nonprofit organization, broke ground in March on the three-story, 14-apartment development, which had been expected to be ready for occupancy in spring 2027.
“The contaminated soil that they are removing smells very heavily of petroleum,” said nearby resident Tracie Shannon last week.
Shannon said the odor had left her feeling lightheaded and that she had spoken with a passerby who reported feeling nauseous. She and other nearby residents closed their windows while the work was underway.
Jocelyn Ayer, director of the Litchfield County Center for Housing Opportunity and a consultant to the committee, said tests showed no contamination in three of the site’s four sections.
The remaining debris was scheduled to be removed by Oct. 7. Test results for the final section are expected Oct. 12 and will determine whether further remediation is needed.
The Board of Selectmen voted Sept. 22 to contribute $113,000 in available Small Cities grant funds toward the work. The total cleanup was previously estimated at $165,000 to $175,000, with the Salisbury Housing Committee responsible for raising the balance. The town owns the property.
“The bottom line is we, the town, have felt responsible,” said First Selectman Curtis Rand, at the Board of Selectmen’s monthly meeting Monday.
“It’s on town property. We never knew about it. No one knew about it,” Rand said. He wondered “how many other contaminated oil tanks are scattered around town,” adding, “so at least we’re cleaning it up.”
According to a representative of the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), testing following the discovery found “only minor contamination.” The representative said groundwater sampling indicated no threat to nearby wells.
Crews have been using heavy machinery to excavate the contaminated soil and pile it near the road for disposal. In total, licensed contractors from Big East Environmental Services removed 650 tons of contaminated soil, carting away 26 full truckloads to the disposal facility in the last week.
When the Journal visited the site Oct. 2, another resident said the smell had been nauseating while crews were working but had diminished after work paused.
For Shannon, the lack of notice added to concerns.
“We just don’t understand why there hasn’t been more transparency from the town as to what is happening and when it’s going to happen,” she said.
“I believe those in a specific radius should be notified… It would be a courtesy to the townspeople and the people in the area of the contaminated site to be notified of what’s happening.”
DEEP requires some remediation projects to post signs alerting passersby to contamination, though only in more severe cases.
Dean Diamond, owner of Deano’s Pizza on the same block, also called for “better communication.”
The Salisbury Housing Committee has not yet said whether the cleanup will change the development’s anticipated spring 2027 completion date.
Meg Sher, executive director of the David M. Hunt Library in Falls Village.L. Tomaino 
Samir LanGusProvided
