York Town News
State-mandated zoning changes worry residents
By Jennifer L. Saunders
YORK - It looks as though some 600 local property owners will no longer be able to add to their homes or prune vegetation to maintain the views they've always had as the town moves forward with the required adoption of state zoning changes.
Last week, the Planning Board hosted a public hearing on a long list of zoning changes proposed for inclusion on the ballot in November. The majority of the changes come as state-mandated regulations in the shoreland zones, and many residents attended the hearing to learn more and to voice their concerns.
The consensus expressed by several residents and Planning Board members is that while regulations to protect the environment are very important, the new state mandates do not match the development that has already occurred in York.
For example, Town Planner Steve Burns explained, the state is designating areas of town as "Resource Protection" zones where neighborhoods already exist or where, for example, working farms have been in operation for hundreds of years.
"The shoreland zones (in those areas) today have decent protection for the resources. The area isn't pristine, and that's what resource protection is set up to do, to protect pristine areas," Burns said, describing the reason for concern from so many property owners as a "mismatch" of zoning with areas that are already developed.
The primary changes to the town's zoning maps, Burns said, are a series of 10 wetlands around town that are being added to resource protection as potential wildlife habitat areas by the state. The areas include Bell Marsh, Whippoorwill Swamp, Cornswamp Road, Phillips Cove, Lake Caroline, Southside Road, Godfrey Cove and a wetland system near the Kittery boundary with about 600 properties in question.
One resident who spoke at the hearing said there is likely to be an influx of property owners to Town Hall seeking permits to make use of their property before the ordinances change, adding there is not enough staff in the Code Enforcement Office to manage such demand.
Planning Board member Lee Corbin questioned whether the board could waive certain criteria for properties where homes already exist.
"These are developed areas that you are imposing these regulations on," Corbin said of the state's zoning mandates.
Burns said the board does not have the option to waive zoning, and that the provisions for granting variances are very narrow, such as a property owner being able to show they have no economic use for the property under the new zoning. In a case where a house exists, he explained, that would be considered an economic use and the variance could not be granted.
Burns said that certain areas of town, such as Harris Island and Route 1, are commercial shoreland zones and thus are not mandated to become resource protection areas.
"That's maybe one percent of the changes we're talking about," he said.
Burns said the town will be meeting with Maine Department of Environmental Protection officials to examine the zoning proposals against what is actually present on the land.
One question, he said, is "How many houses makes it enough to not zone it resource protection?" as the term resource protection applies to pristine areas.
"Resource protection is what's worrying us the most," said Tom Blaisdell, whose family has owned and run the Blaisdell Farm on Southside Road for generations.
Blaisdell said he understands such changes as provisions for increased setbacks from coastal bluffs along the York River and the coast, but questioned why certain portions of Southside Road - including the farm - should be labeled as resource protection while neighboring properties along Woodside Meadow and Route 1 are not.
"My concerns are mainly with the farm uses," he said, referring to those that exist and the family's goal of adding a maple sugar shack to the property, which might be blocked by the changes.
Burns said he did not know whether the sugar house would be permitted, but said he believed the planting and harvesting of sugar bush would be allowed under timber harvesting provisions within the new zoning.
Several residents thanked the Planning Board and Burns for their efforts to make the public aware of the implications of these changes for property owners.
"The message wasn't great, but the delivery was perfect," said Greg Gosselin of Thunder Hill, adding, "I don't think they've got a snapshot at the statehouse of how this truly will impact everyone."
The Planning Board also held hearings on other amendments, including one to allow additions to houses in existing neighborhoods to match the setback patters in those areas, as is the case with any new houses, and on planned changes to the zoning in York Beach. Other amendments include increased setbacks from coastal bluffs of between 75 and 100 feet, provisions to protect archaeological sites, changes in septic system standards and prohibitions of new permanent docks.
The next zoning hearing before the Planning Board is set for June 28, followed by approximately one month before the first Board of Selectmen hearing for more substantive changes, as needed, Burns said.
"There's no problem in making the November deadline," he said, adding, "... We need to just hammer this thing out and get it done, but we need to get it done well."
For more on the proposed ordinances, visit http://www.yorkmaine.org/ and follow the links to the Planning Department.
