York Town News
State relaxes Resource Protection requirements for developed parcels
By Jennifer L. Saunders
YORK - It was a stressful time for local homeowners in recent months as the Planning Board grappled with state-mandates requiring additional restrictions on approximately 500 properties in the town's shoreland zone, many of which had already been developed with single-family homes.
When the board met on Thursday, June 28, however, Town Planner Steve Burns had good news for the dozen or so property owners who had come to hear the latest on the proposed Shoreland Amendments to the town's Zoning Ordinance.
After prior public hearings, Burns met with state officials to discuss the "Resource Protection" designation of properties that had already been developed. By definition, he explained, the purpose of such zoning is to protect those areas around watersheds and shoreland areas that have not been developed in order to preserve the resources.
Looking at York's information and zoning maps, state officials agreed, he said, and dropped about four-fifths of the properties first listed as "Resource Protection" due to the existence of prior development on the sites.
Burns said the state reviewed York's information to determine what properties in the Lake Caroline area, for example, should be protection, and many of the areas that remain under the new zoning are either town-owned, controlled by the York Land Trust or are conservation lands associated with subdivisions. A few lots with houses do still meet the designation, he said, but most have been removed.
"The vast majority of people who have single-family homes have come out; the undeveloped land has stayed in," Burns said.
Jackie Grant was one of the property owners who had expected to see significant restrictions placed on her home, and she and several others thanked the Planning Board and Burns for their work in clarifying the state's zoning requirements and making the public aware of the impact before the amendments became law.
"Just a big, big thank you," she said. "... Steve, you're an angel."
The state also agreed to change setbacks from certain coastal bluffs to match existing patters of development, including Dover Bluff, overlooking Long Sands Beach, where the setback requirement was first expected to be between 50 and 75 feet but has been changed to 20 feet from the top of the bluff.
Last week's meeting was the second of a total of four public hearings on the ordinance amendments initially proposed for the November ballot.
Ultimately, the board voted to remove two from the list of 14 amendments at this time, determining they were not yet ready for a public vote. Those amendments were the rezoning of the York Beach Village District and a change to the language regarding front setbacks in existing neighborhoods.
That amendment is tied in with a Raccoon Ridge dispute, where a resident would have to tear down and rebuild his house to add a garage, based on the current zoning language. Essentially, new construction is allowed to match the pattern of road setbacks in a neighborhood, but additions to existing homes are not.
The revision to the language came forward following an Appeals Board decision in the case, brought forward by an abutter, where that board determined the Code Enforcement Office's interpretation of allowing additions to meet the same setbacks as new construction could not stand.
Among the other Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Ordinance amendments moving forward for a public hearing are changes related to historic resources, storm water management, public roads, watershed protection, vehicle parking limits and site planning for temporary events.
The 12 amendments still under consideration for a November vote will be scheduled for a public hearing before the Board of Selectmen next month, while the other two will be scheduled for work sessions with the Planning Board in the hope of including those proposals on the May ballot.
For more on the work of the Planning Department, see Burns's July report in next week's edition of The Independent.
