Connecticut Couple Sues Town Over Hourly Trail Rentals on Their Land
Charles and Elizabeth Copley are challenging Roxbury, Connecticut, after the town told them to stop charging $10 per hour for hikers using an app.
After acquiring two adjacent parcels totaling 50 acres in Roxbury, Connecticut, Charles and Elizabeth Copley developed forest trails and hired a forester to approve a ten-year management plan. Using the Sniffspot app, they started charging $10 per hour for hikers and dog walkers, a service that helped maintain the trails. In April 2025, a zoning enforcement letter labeled the activity a "dog park" and cited a newly adopted short-term-rental ordinance that bans hourly rentals.
The Copleys applied for a home-enterprise license, but officials said a single license could not cover both plots without costly surveying. Conflicting guidance from town staff left the couple uncertain of any specific prohibition. The Institute for Justice filed a letter demanding the town either point to an applicable ordinance or confirm the rentals are permissible, warning it will resume the hikes on October 1 if no response is received by September 30.
Why it matters
The case tests whether local zoning rules can limit a landowner's right to charge for short-term recreational use of private property.
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