PLANNING BOARD
Gardiner Planning Board June 2, 2004
City of Gardiner, Maine Special Meeting 6:00 PM
ROLL CALL
Present: James Montell Pat Hart Susan Crawford
Deborah Willis Edward Lawrence
Absent: Allie Vigue Pamela Mitchel Bob Moody, Alternate
Also Present: Stephen Langsdorf Jodi Kaloust Rich Rambo
Geri Doyle
Erik Stumpfil, City Attorney
Steve Hanley
Glenna Nowell
Dorothy Morang, Planning Board Recording Secretary
1.) Chair Montell called the meeting to order at 6:17 PM.
2.) Roll call taken.
3.) Chair Montell read the proposal.
Rich Rambo from the Barn Door Committee described the proposal concerning the Brunswick Hill area. They have made a recommendation to re-zone and add a new district, the Professional/Residential District.
Erik advised the Board that they need to ensure that the change is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan and that there are appropriate means of dealing with this issue.
A long discussion ensued. Some of the hi-lights of the discussion;
Erik Stumpfil - Erik spoke about the possibility of an extended amortization with a goal to eliminate non-conforming uses over time, maybe a period of 20 years.
Steve Langsdorf, Attorney for C. N. Brown indicated that they have concerns about the amortization and beyond whether it is legally defensible, it is fundamentally unfair to focus on one business in one area.
Rich Rambo indicated that the Barn Door Committee recommendation left the time frame blank. He said the Board of Trade, Board of Directors voted unanimously in opposition to the canopy. They said the Gardiner Common is an icon for the City of Gardiner and it is counter-productive to the future of business in Gardiner. Rich said that early on there were many objections and the first building owner listened. This time no one knew about it until the girders were going up. They held a number of public meetings and C. N. Brown said that they wanted to be a good neighbor, but the canopy was not negotiable if they want something different, the City would have to put their money where their mouth is.
Steve Hanley indicated that this proposal sends a good message that we value our neighborhoods, historic, etc, yet still are successful with businesses, but not at the expense of destroying neighborhoods. He said that Brunswick Hill has been a battleground for years from the time the church was torn down and a gas station put in. He would like to see it fixed so there is not another war in 20 years.
Geri Doyle said it could send a negative message. Why would anyone want to invest in Gardiner if the Ordinance was going to change just after they bought it? She said it needs to be addressed so that this won t happen again. If they don t address canopies, what happens to other businesses.
Glenna Nowell said this is sending an awful anti-business message we have to negotiate with them and phase it out over time. She said it has been a topic of conversation for quite a long time and it doesn t sound good for businesses that want to come here and locate.
Dodi Kaloust said she liked the compromise of a very long amortization process, which will address people who ve made investments, and also addresses the non-conforming issue.
Board Members also commented:
Pat Hart asked if they change the zoning and in the future C. N. Brown sells, can another gas station go in there? Erik said the use could continue indefinitely as long as there isn t a 1-year discontinuance. Pat said that she has a problem with targeting just this use. We need a policy to handle all non-conforming uses, not a policy to take down a canopy on a corner.
Jim Montell said he is concerned about the message this sends to property owners.
Deborah Willis said it looks like we re creating this for one place. What is it so offensive that we have to do business differently?
Sue Crawford said she doesn t understand the opposition. The current Ordinance was adopted 1 year ago with a citizen committee, Planning Board and Council. Canopies are not a new issue. We let them in, issued a permit and then found out differently? She thinks it sends a poor message.
A recommendation was made to amend the Barn Door Committee s recommendation to include the following properties in the Professional/Residential Zoning District:
City Tax Map 34, Lots 65 & 66; 95,96 & 97.
7:46 PM Chair Montell closed the workshop.
Sue Crawford made a motion to accept recommendations 1 6 with the amendment to add the lots on Neal Street as recommended. Pat Hart seconded the motion.
Vote: 5 in favor. 0 opposed. Motion passed.
4.) ADJOURN
Sue Crawford made a motion to adjourn. Pat Hart seconded the motion.
Vote: 5 in favor. 0 opposed. Motion passed.
Adjourned at 7:53 PM
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