The Boothbay Harbor planning board held a public hearing March 14 on two amendments to ordinances proposed for the town meeting warrant.

The amendments read:

“To see if the voters of Boothbay Harbor vote to amend the current Land Use Ordinance as follows: Section 170-28, Schedule of Dimensional Requirements, Note B is amended to read: 'The minimum residential setback on route 27, south of the Routes 27/96 intersection is 30 feet; the minimum residential setback on route 27, north of the Routes 27/96 intersection is 300 feet. The minimum commercial setback on route 27, south of the Routes 27/96 intersection is 40 feet, the minimum commercial setback on route 27, north of the Routes 27/96 intersection is 60 feet.'”

“To see if the voters of Boothbay Harbor vote to amend the current Land Use Ordinance as follows: Section 170-28, Schedule of Dimensional Requirements, Minimum Land Area per Dwelling Unit in the Downtown Business District (with Town water and sewer) is amended to read: Residential: 10,000; All other: 2,000.”

Board Chair Bill Hamblen said the first amendment clarifies language and corrects inconsistency. “We believe the intent has been there all along in the zoning, but the existing paragraph did not read that way.”

He said the second one came about in part due to the redevelopment of the property formerly known as the Romar Bowling Alley. Though the property had many land uses historically, redevelopment rules only allow for one use per 10,000 square feet.

“It turns out that that is true of many or most of the lots downtown, that is, the existing number of uses on those lots exceeded what would be permitted if they started anew,” said Hamblen.

Dunsford and board member John Hochstein surveyed the downtown and found if the current dimensional requirement for commercial and other uses (10,000 square feet) was lowered to 2,000 square feet, over 70 percent of properties could accommodate more uses. In fact, only four percent of all the properties Dunsford and Hochstein surveyed had 20,000 square feet or better to accommodate more than one use.

The board briefly discussed the idea of second floor residential dwelling units after board member Chris Swanson clarified that, even on the second level, residential would still apply as a use and, therefore, call for no less than 10,000 square feet. That is, under the proposed amendment, a 4,000 square foot property could accommodate two commercial uses, but not a residential use even if only on the second level.

Dunsford said the required dimensions for residential uses were amended in 1980 to limit residences in the downtown district and the proposed amendment will continue to honor that. Because the issue is complicated, Dunsford said he and Hochstein figured changes to accommodate second level residences could wait until next year to be addressed.

Swanson disagreed. Though the rest of the board was ready to move on, Hamblen said they would keep second level residences under consideration.

Consultant considered

The board discussed the idea of hiring a consultant on a harbor master plan. Hamblen said if the boards and the town are interested, now is the perfect time with money still in the budget – around $20,000 according to Selectman Mike Tomko – and grants becoming available for such projects, according to Lincoln County Planner Bob Faunce.

“We would have to put together an RFP (request for proposal) and put it out to bid … We're talking about spending more than $5,000, but I think it's a worthwhile effort that we ought to undertake and provide that sort of global consistency and global vision for the harbor,” said Hamblen.

Dunsford said the consultants overseeing the regional economic plan could not pinpoint specific areas like the harbor as the plan involved four towns, so a harbor master plan focused on land use would be beneficial.

Hochstein was not convinced that someone separate and outside the community would be effective.

“What about the harbor? Not the land side – the water side. Boaters, boaters, boaters. That might be the most significant part to look at. We can piecemeal out Pear Street, we can piecemeal out the lead down to the footbridge … but to hang it up for another year or two years waiting for a consultant – is that good expenditure of money?”

“We're not going to hang it up and wait for the consultant,” said Hamblen. “Clearly, we're not.”

“Umm – that was not the experience with the JEDC. They came back and said, 'Wait until we get the consultant's report, wait until we get the consultant's report,'” said Hochstein.

Hamblen said selectmen and the planning board should have input on a consultant and then issue a joint RFP.

Swanson said he believes that approach would make much more sense drawing on the east-side workgroup as an example of Faunce's value working with them.

Said board member Margaret Perritt, “We still have to talk about housing for our young families … parking … traffic control. There are other things that we need to look at in this town more than just the harbor. It seems to me that would be an advantage of hiring an outside consultant.”

Hamblen asked the rest of the board if, with disagreements aside, they would agree a consultant was needed for “something.” The board agreed.

“Now the question is 'What is that something,'” said Hamblen. He told all the members to come up with priorities.

The board meets next at 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 11.

The March 14 meeting accompanying this article is also available on Boothbay Region Television (BRTV)’s website and on Channel 1301.