Community Corner

Former Powder Ridge Owner Loses Appeal

The state's Appellate Court rejected Kenneth Leavitt's appeal to block a foreclosure on his home.

 

The former owner of the now-defunct ski resort has lost a court appeal to stave off foreclosure of his Powder Hill Road home, property Kenneth Leavitt used as collateral on more than $2.4 million in loans he took out to improve the ski area nearly 10 years ago.

The Connecticut Appellate Court on Tuesday issued its decision upholding a Middletown Superior Court ruling, issued in 2010, allowing Middlefield Holdings LLC to foreclose on Leavitt’s Powder Hill Road home. Middlefield Holdings years earlier foreclosed on the Powder Ridge property, which the now owns and is seeking to sell or lease for development.

Find out what's happening in Durham-Middlefieldwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

issued the original loans and Middlefield Holdings LLC purchased Powder Ridge at a foreclosure sale in the summer of 2008. Around the same time it assumed the mortgage on Leavitt’s residential property and moved to foreclose on that.  In 2009 a judge issued a ruling allowing the foreclosure, which Leavitt sought to overturn. In 2010 the court reaffirmed the so-called “strict-foreclosure,” and determined the total debt on the property to be $628,134.44.

Leavitt, representing himself, appealed the decision to the state’s Appellate Court, arguing, in part, that Middlefield Holdings didn’t have legal standing to foreclose. He also argued that the lower court erred in making its ruling.

Find out what's happening in Durham-Middlefieldwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The Appellate Court justices, however, disagreed and have now sent the case back to Middletown Superior Court for the foreclosure case to be completed.

Leavitt on Wednesday said he would continue to fight to save his home. He has filed another lawsuit in Middletown Superior Court against Middlefield Holdings, challenging the firm’s takeover of Powder Ridge.

“We think that trial will result in proper justice,” Leavitt said. “This process is not over.”


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here