LandUse Comprehensive Plan Committee
Meeting Notes for February 25, 2003
Attending: Jerry, Barbara, Marcia, Cheryl, Karen, Charlie and Brad
Brad passed out village zoning maps, materials from the State including Comp. Plan guidelines and expectations, articles on sprawl, smart growth, and big maps of South Berwick. He had copies of all building permits issued, by year, from 1990 to 2002. Cheryl volunteered to code and plot the permits on the 1" to1000' scale tax map. This will enable us to view and hopefully determine any emerging growth pattern since the previous Comp Plan.
Minutes of 2/11/03 reviewed. We discussed further what our job is as a committee. Questions were raised that the issue of sprawl and growth was emphasized in much of the handouts. It was noted that he State Planning Office is generating this information, because of its increased focused concern on issues of sprawl and smart growth. We will discuss these matters at a future date.
Brad spoke with Jon St. Pierre about the Industrial Zone (IZ). There is no "park". Presently all of the land in the IZ is privately owned. The IZ is traversed by the Northeast gas pipeline and CMP. These utilities own easments that limit right of way access. Permits will be restrictive.
The Transportation Planner at Southern Maine Regional Planning Commission (SMRPC) gave a presentation last week to the Transportation Subcommittee. Matters concerning our work follow. There may be other built in restrictions limiting development in the IZ. One is clearly Maine Department of Transportation (MDOT) access management rules for roadways. All state roads are rated and subsequently regulated to specific standards. The section of Rt. 236 that cuts through the IZ from Eliot on the south to just north of Fife's Lane before Jewett Corner is a Retrograde Arterial Standard Roadway. This is the highest classification within the MDOT system, and closest to the Interstate Highway System. The speed limit in this section by law is 55mph. The state may allow a reduction to 45mph, and that only due to the
High School. Under the current MDOT law, Marshwood High could not have be situated on this section of Rt. 236. MDOT, due to the traffic counts we are all well aware of, wants traffic to flow in this section unimpeded. No traffic lights and limited road cuts is the future here.
The IZ is not linked to water and sewer. A concern, and on going discussion, for this committee will be water and sewer in the IZ. We will discuss the pro and cons of mandating all IZ development being linked to water and sewer. The focus is not the present as much as 10 to 20 years down the road, so to speak.
It was proposed we strike the phrase Industrial Park from the Strategy section of the Comp Plan.
*Reevaluate the location of the existing industrial zone, suggested.
We discussed if the IZ section on the west side of 236 should be changed since it is wet, and because the high school occupies a good portion of the IZ here. Leaving this as IZ ultimately seemed fine. The IZ doesn’t prohibit other kinds of development presently, and it seems self limiting due to its location on Rt.236.
On to the Village:
We looked over zoning regs and old comp plan and all of us became frustrated at the lack of follow through of the old plan, the lack of enforcement, and the politics involved in many decisions.
We discussed break downs in local government causing this fustration and possibly what they were:
1. lack of town planner?
2. volunteer planning board doesn’t have enough support?
3. not enough use of SMRPC?
4. mechanisms in old comp. plan never put in place?
5. laws applied willy-nilly and politically?
The Zoning Ordinance is the Law. It should be enforced fully and equally.
We recommended our reviewing all job descriptions for people, both volunteer and paid, who are involved in town planning, enforcement, and policy. We may find ourselves redefining and rewriting these job descriptions as part of our review.
We revisited our recommending a return of Portland Street and Main Street (formerly B3, now R1) to B3.
Homework: All of us need to check out the present zoning regs (text and charts) for B1, B2, B3, R1 and R1A so the discussion at our next meeting will be informed. Additional text material will be available, and Brad will e-mail you accordingly.
Notes submitted by Karen McCarthy Eger and Brad Christo 2/26/03.
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