A public hearing on bringing local land use zoning and housing ordinances into compliance with state law will be held by the Planning Board on Wednesday, Aug. 2, at 7 p.m.
Amendments to the ordinances were drafted after the legislature earlier this year passed LD2003, requiring cities and towns to follow state guidance on multi-family affordable housing, accessory dwellings, and denser development in designated areas of town.
Lee Jay Feldman, director of planning at the Southern Maine Planning and Development Commission, proposed wording changes to the current ordinances that comply with state rules. In a letter to the board, he stated, “It is important to understand that there is not much to any wiggle room to change these amendments. The changes come straight from the state law.”
Affected by the changes are the kind of activities and construction allowed, setbacks, lot sizes and dimensions, off-street parking standards, accessory dwelling units, planned residential development, and minimum road and shoreland frontage.
The Planning Board voted unanimously Wednesday, at the suggestion of board Chair Greg Zinser, to ask the town to authorize resources necessary for a full professional review and overhaul of all local land use ordinances. Ordinances have been changed in a “piecemeal fashion” for some years as need has arisen, he said. Some of the changes are ambiguous, added board member William Cole, with too many gray areas.
The comprehensive plan update makes it even more important for ordinances to integrate smoothly and clearly with the new state vision and guidance, said Zinser.
