The Boothbay Harbor Planning Board accepted findings of fact Dec. 11 related to a court order regarding Eastside Waterfront Park. The board approved findings on several key points including lot size, location of other structures and potential for erosion. 

The move came after the board's Nov. 20 meeting where members reviewed the findings to fulfill a Maine Superior Court request for more information on previous decisions.

A lawyer for Boothbay Harbor Waterfront Preservation lodged a complaint during the December meeting. Anthony Muri thanked the board and town lawyer for their time and efforts, but said not including the litigants in the remand proceedings is a “substantial omission.” He said it would have been possible to include park representatives and abutters in the fact findings without interrupting the process, and they may have been able to improve them. 

“I feel an obligation, given the nature of this proceeding and the fact that it will return to the superior court, to record an objection to what I call an omission in the process,” Muri said.  

Board member Merritt Blakeslee responded, the remand was directed at the board to explain what it did in 2021 and did not personally consider input from either party appropriate. “You will certainly have your day in court where you can argue these, but I would not have found that appropriate at the last meeting,” he said.     

In other business, the board granted conditional site plan approval to Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor Community School District for a new outdoor learning space at the elementary school. The project is part of a grant-funded partnership with Hearty Roots, a nonprofit focused on providing children’s outdoor programs.  

Boothbay Region Elementary School Principal Shawna Kurr spoke to the board alongside Hearty Roots Program Manager Erin Quinley. Kurr said the collaboration is around nature-based education and social-emotional learning. However, she said outdoor education needs shelter because of Maine’s inclement weather.

Kurr said the site plan was for an outdoor tent with no utilities; the tent holds up to 20 students at a time, largely for afterschool programming. The board unanimously approved the site plan with a condition that two edits be made to the final drawn plan. 

In addition, the board heard from Boothbay Harbor Selectboard Chair Michael Tomko. Tomko updated the planning board on the Dec. 9 selectmen meeting, which included a discussion on draft proposed ordinance changes. He said several of the proposed changes were previously made by the planning board but tabled in previous rounds of ordinance changes.  

The planning board also discussed a proposal by member David Cody, who suggested the board require state fire marshal approval before applicants come before the board for publicly accessible buildings, such as businesses. Cody said the change could help ensure buildings are reviewed for safety and take some liability off the planning board. “Every year we invite thousands of people here and we need to give them a safe place to vacation and enjoy,” he said.