While out for a walk on June 2, Brandon residents Patrick and Michelle Fitzsimmons spotted a large pile of household goods on lower Carver Street, beyond where the pavement ends and the roadway extends toward Syndicate Road in Pittsford. There was a child’s car seat, a metal shelving unit, a plastic storage bin filled with junk, and other unwanted items — all illegally dumped on the side of the road.
The discovery came one month to the day after Brandon’s Green Up Day, part of a statewide initiative organized by Green Up Vermont to promote the stewardship of the state’s natural landscape and waterways and improve the livability of communities.
On Green Up Day this year, a volunteer group led by Patrick Fitzsimmons cleaned up this stretch of road, which had become strewn with illegally dumped materials and burn piles over the years. They collected and carted away more than 4,000 pounds of waste.
Patrick Fitzsimmons said the dumping typically starts about one-eighth of a mile past the end of Carver Street, where he and his wife moved in June 2024. The Fitzsimmons can't see any dumping from their house, which is the last for about three miles, but they report seeing all kinds of garbage and debris that have been dumped just down the road, including mattresses, old furniture, bags of household garbage, tires, and cans and bottles that have been thrown out of car windows.
“We've also come across quite a few hypodermic needles, and there are always burned-out piles with the remains of all kinds of stuff that shouldn't be burned, like mattresses, plastics, bags of household garbage and bottles and cans,” he said.
According to James Leary, a Brandon lawyer, who coordinates the town’s Green Up Day efforts, the area has been an illegal dumping ground for household waste, construction debris, appliances, tires, and more for many years.
“Much of the waste ends up in Otter Creek, and it seems as though some inconsiderate people even deposit waste directly into the river,” said Leary.
The penalties for illegal dumping, while certainly more punitive than the cost of legally taking one’s trash to the Brandon transfer station, have not deterred such criminal activities.
State and municipal officials may issue penalties of up to $500 to individuals who illegally dump trash on lands or waters outside of a transfer station, and may assign them community roadside cleanup. If violators fail to pay the fine, their driver’s license will be suspended for a period of 10 days and they will lose their hunting and/or fishing license privileges for a period of one year.
Proposed Reclassifying/Closing of Road
Fitzimmons said he has talked to town officials numerous times about the problem.
“The town manager and select board members were very receptive,” he said. He learned that in late 2024, town manager Seth Hopkins had proposed reclassifying the road, in part due to the illegal dumping. Because the road crosses into Pittsford, both towns must agree to any such change.
The October 24, 2024 edition of The Brandon Reporter covered the Wednesday, October 16 Pittsford town meeting where Pittsford Town Manager David Atherton stated he had received a phone call and subsequent letter from Hopkins inquiring whether Pittsford “had any concerns” about a potential reclassification of the unpaved portion of Carver Street between the railroad crossing and the bridge over Otter Creek, where Syndicate Road begins.
Hopkins stated that the road is currently Class 3, which the state defines as “a highway negotiable under normal circumstances all seasons of the year by a standard manufactured pleasure car.” Essentially, a Class 3 road must be drivable by standard motor vehicles in every season. However, according to Hopkins, the town does not maintain that stretch of Carver Street in the winter and it is often closed during mud season.
The issue, Hopkins relayed to Atherton, was that this stretch of Carver Street has long suffered from illegal dumping of trash and debris.
Though the Pittsford Selectboard expressed reservations about cutting off a road between the two towns, Hopkins noted that Atherton later told him that the Pittsford Highway Chief had no objection to Brandon’s barring that portion of Carver Street to vehicular traffic from the Pittsford side.
However, at the December 4, 2024 Pittsford town meeting, a contingent of Brandon residents showed up to dissuade the Pittsford Selectboard from agreeing to the closure, according to Brandon Reporter coverage of the meeting. Many of these residents had previously voiced their opposition to the plan directly to the Brandon Selectboard. Fitzsimmons said that in 2025, he, Hopkins, and a selectboard member met with Pittsford’s current town manager to again discuss the problem, but made no headway.
For now, the problem continues.
“The heartbreaking thing is it's a beautiful road, or could be,” said Fitzsimmons. “It winds along the Otter Creek. It's like a bird sanctuary down there. If it remained cleaned up it could be a great place for a walk or bike or ski, birding and nature walks.”
Citizens with information about illegal dumping should contact the Brandon Police department at (802) 247-0222.
