PITTSBURGH - A used auto dealer claims his neighbors amassed political power in a Fayette County town in order to shut his business down.
The allegations in Steven Humbert's lawsuit in Pittsburgh federal court, filed Jan. 3, complains he is the target of two members of Henry Clay Township's Board of Supervisors with whom he had previous disagreements over a gravel driveway.
His six-count complaint names the town, Lawrence Hartman, Jr. and Jesse Bates II as defendants, plus individuals they appointed to allegedly do their political bidding.
Bates, a neighbor of Humbert's, also owns a competing used auto business, the suit says. Humbert is claiming his due process rights have been violated, leading to the closing of his dealership.
"Plaintiff has a fundamental Constitutional right to use and enjoy his property and dedicate it to any lawful use and purpose," the suit says.
"All named Defendants... acted under color of state law and deprived Plaintiff of his substantive and procedral due process rights under the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution by revoking his permits and ordering that he cease and desist operation of his used auto sales business."
Humbert owns Marclay Motors, which he started in 2017. The suit says he is a single father of two children who relies on the dealership as his sole source of income.
His zoning permit was approved in August 2017, much to the dismay of his neighbors. Humbert's land development plan was approved by the town's zoning officer in 2019.
His car lot is accessible through a gravel driveway. His neighbors, Hartman and Bates, over a six-year period, raised their concerns with the Henry Clay Board of Supervisors, which rejected them. The two are family friends, the suit says, and Bates has a competing used car business in Markleysburg.
"Then, in consecutive elections, Bates II and Hartman, Jr. were elected to the Henry Clay Township Board of Supervisors," the suit says.
"They consolidated their political power by forcing the only remaining incumbent off the board and appointing their hand-selected crony, Jerrod Hostetler. Then, they replaced the existing zoning officer with Tammy Stenson and gave her marching orders to target Plaintiff and his business."
The new Board of Supervisors and new zoning officer, Stenson, then revoked Humbert's permits on Sept. 9, 2024, the suit says, without advance notice or a hearing. Humbert was ordered to stop operating within six days.
Stenson's letter accused Humbert of operating his business without submiting a land development plan for approval.
"Of course, Plaintiff had submitted his Land Development Plan at least five years earlier, which had been reviewed and approved by Henry Clay Township on May 7, 2019," the suit says.
These actions were made in a "reckless disregard for Plaintiff's rights," the suit says. It asks the court to restore Humbert's zoning and occupancy permits and prevent the dfendants from interfering with his business.
Bradley Bassi of Bassi, Vreeland & Assoc. in Charleroi represents the plaintiff, as does Corey Young.