The future of York Beach: Residents and selectmen split on zoning plan

On a typical summer evening in York Beach, crowds are seen here enjoying the shops and sights in the business district. Come November, it will be up to local voters to decide what they want for the future of York Beach as they weigh in on a new zoning proposal for the area.
Photo by Tori Rasche

YORK BEACH - The York Beach zoning proposal is headed to a townwide vote in November, but questions linger over whether there were conflicts of interest involved in its approval, and what the plan could mean for the town's future.

The proposal includes reduced lot size requirements to build, increased maximum lot-coverage and special conditions to allow for 40-foot building heights.

Proponents of the plan have stated the ordinance has been in the works for years, and it is time to move forward, contending that the proposal reflects what already exists in much of York Beach.

Opponents, however - including many York Beach business owners and residents - say that while change is needed for the business district, this proposal is too much, too soon.

One key area of concern is that the proposed zoning does not include design standards for new construction or renovations, which had many people at a recent Board of Selectmen meeting questioning how the town could support allowing 100-percent lot coverage and 40-foot-high buildings without provisions to make sure building designs are in keeping with the character of the area.

Others pointed to recent major flooding and drainage issues at the beach, including the Mother's Day storm of 2006 and the Patriot's Day storm in 2007, as reasons why issues like infrastructure improvements and drainage must be addressed before increased building is permitted in York Beach Village Center.

A total of 14 York Beach business owners signed a letter that was submitted to the selectmen asking the board not to move the proposal forward to a vote in its current form. Local residents Rick and Kathy Boston, owners of York Beach landmark The Goldenrod, were among those who signed that letter. The Bostons followed up with another letter to the board in advance of the Sept. 8 public hearing, stressing that issues like parking and drainage in the beach area must be addressed before a zoning proposal of this magnitude moves forward.

The Bostons were among many opponents of the plan who also requested that Selectwoman Cathy Goodwin, who is the president and chief executive officer of the Greater York Region Chamber of Commerce and has worked on the York Beach Renaissance plan for several years, abstain from the vote on the ordinance.

Former selectman Dwight Bardwell was among those who addressed the board, reviewing the history of the proposal and stating that he remains opposed, as he was to a prior draft, due to concerns about parking and drainage with increased lot coverage and the lack of infrastructure upgrades and an access road from Route 1.

"This issue should have had an independent impact study performed," Bardwell said, adding, "Zoning changes this sweeping must have strong public support" but instead have created "angst and anger" among residents and business owners.

With Oscar Plotkin, who is proposing a "What If" plan for massive redevelopment of York's Wild Kingdom and surrounding acreage, waiting in the wings, Bardwell said, the town must assess whether his initial proposal works with the town's vision for York Beach.

"What he has proposed is a blueprint for what we probably don't want for York Beach," Bardwell said.

Instead of moving forward with the zoning proposal, he said, selectmen should allow more time for the Planning Department and Planning Board to work with local residents as growing TIF monies and recently approved drainage funding will mean more revenue on the way to offset infrastructure needs.

Bardwell, like several of the York Beach residents and business owners, urged Goodwin to abstain from the vote.

"There's no way I believe you can be impartial on this topic, being so close to it," he said.

Former selectman Ron Nowell, who is known locally for his extensive knowledge of York history and zoning, cautioned the board that moving forward with this plan could open a zoning can of worms because, he said, it does not match the town's existing Comprehensive Plan.

"You pass any new zoning not in compliance with your Comprehensive Plan, you've got a major problem," he said, as such a move would not be legal and would call all existing zoning into question and open a door for developers and property owners to fight the town's regulations over proposed projects.

Nowell, too, pointed to the history of flooding in York Beach as a reason for concern with the new plan.

"Most of York Beach business district was built on a marsh," he said, adding the area "becomes a pond" following significant rainfall events.

Local resident Charles Stacy echoed the comments of both Bardwell and Nowell, telling the board the zoning should be reviewed by an attorney before going forward.

"You don't even know if this is legal," he said.

Joe Lipton, the owner of Inn on the Blues in York Beach, also raised concerns about the plan.

"This document has changed hands many times," he said, questioning why the statement of fact included in the zoning would mention preserving the historic character of York Beach when the current proposal does not include any design standards for new construction in the area.

York Beach resident Nancy Chase also wrote to the board, opposing the inclusion of her property in the proposal to redefine the York Beach Village area. She explained that she had been told by York Beach Renaissance proponents that without the new zone, the parking lot she operates on her property would be illegal.

Since then, she said, town officials have assured her that is not the case, as parking on her property is an existing use, and stressed she has no desire to have her property in a new zone as she has no plans of developing the property into a business, and simply runs the parking lot to help pay her taxes and keep the home in her family, as it has been for over 100 years.

York resident Cliff Estes also voiced concerns about the proposal and urged the board not to move forward at this time, while Jean Kerrigan told the selectmen that while it is a good idea that people want to do something about the beach area, the board should assess the goals of the plan.

"Why are you changing the zoning? Is it to benefit the tourists or the people who live here year round?" she asked, discussing the new lot size requirements and building height provisions, and questioning whether that would be allowed in other parts of town, such as Route 1, and telling the board, "You think about the problems with the drainage down there. ... When you have a problem, don't solve the problem - just put a little Band-Aid on it. That's what this zoning is... a Band-Aid."

In the long run, she said, it will only create more problems.

John Welch spoke of the misinformation Chase received on her property, stressing she has never wanted her property to be anything but residential. Welch, too, asked Goodwin to recuse herself from the vote.

Dawn Fernald, a local resident who serves on the Greater York Region Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, stated the issue is not a conflict of interest for Goodwin.

The current proposal comes after almost five years of work, Fernald said, and stressed that the original Renaissance Committee is no longer even in existence and the current group, which includes Planning Board members, continues to work on the issues and welcomes public input as future changes move forward.

Beach business owner and Ellis Park trustee Bill Burnham spoke of how contentious the issue has become, and told the board the reason they have not seen more members of the York Beach business community at hearings is because most of the small business owners work 20-hour days and do not have time to attend the meetings.

The business owners signed their letter to voice their objections to the zoning, he said, adding he, like several others, opposed Goodwin voting on the plan and raised concerns about David Woods, as a York Beach Renaissance proponent, serving on the Planning Board.

Helen Rollins Lord told Goodwin, "I don't think that you can possibly have an unbiased opinion on the business community that supplies your paycheck."

Selectmen Vice Chairman Dave Marshall asked Planning Board member Barrie Munro, who also attended the hearing, if he thought that board should have done anything differently given the comments on the proposal.

Munro said that if he had to do it over again, he would have recommended having the plan vetted by legal counsel. That costs the town money, he said, and the Planning Board must request approval of those funds, adding that when it comes to future zoning, he hopes residents will come to the Planning Board during its public hearings so issues can be addressed as part of the process, rather than waiting until the final public hearing, when the only option is to put the ordinance forward or wait until the next election.

The goal of the current proposal, he said, is to establish zoning that encourages reinvestment in the area.

"Today you can't replicate what's on the face of the land in York Beach village," he said. "The whole bloomin' thing is nonconforming."

When it came time for the board to decide whether the zoning should move forward - and whether Goodwin should have a vote in the matter - the selectmen were divided on both issues.

Looking to the future of the beach, Chairman Mikes Estes spoke of recent incidents where a child was injured on a slide at the Ellis Park playground and a visitor fell and sustained a broken leg on the beach's boardwalk.

"Is that what we want for York Beach?" he asked, adding, "Is York Beach okay, or is it crumbling into something that none of us will ever be proud of? ... This ordinance has nothing to do with Oscar Plotkin's master plan, but I will tell you it will complement each other."

"This is not just York Beach's decision to make, and that is what has raised the ire of the people that have basically controlled York Beach," Goodwin said later in the meeting, speaking of the business owners and residents opposed to the plan and adding that many others do support it.

Selectwoman Kinley Gregg said there is no question that improvements are needed at the beach, but stressed this plan is not the right one.

Marshall agreed, adding that Goodwin should not vote on the matter.

"This has everything to do with the chamber," he said, citing the York Beach Renaissance as the key priority of the multi-town chamber and telling Goodwin she should "make the shrewd decision to step back" and not vote on the ordinance.

"You get your paycheck from the organization," he said. "Your boss is the committee chair."

Gregg began citing the selectmen's policy on avoiding the perception of any conflict of interest in the Code of Ethics, but Estes stopped her.

"I truly do not believe this is a conflict," he said, adding that Goodwin has been to training sessions through the Maine Municipal Association and stressing that Roberts Rules of Order, which governs local meetings, allows her to vote.

"I do not have a conflict," Goodwin responded. "I will vote on this. Roberts Rules allows me to, and I will do that. ... I believe I was elected to vote on this issue."

Selectman Ted Little said he is saddened by the recent accusations of conflicts of interest against Estes, when it came to the affordable housing proposal, and against Goodwin with regard to the zoning plan, stressing it simply seeks to make conforming what is already in existence in York Beach.

"Why are we, on a split vote of this board, holding the voters of York hostage to vote on a town issue?" he asked.

Marshall then questioned Estes' willingness to let selectmen who share his point of view speak on the issue while not permitting Gregg to read from the ethics policy.

Estes returned that he and Goodwin are both working people who are willing to serve on the board, but that when it comes to issues Gregg and Marshall dislike, they "pull out all the stops" with allegations of conflicts. He did, however, allow Gregg to cite the policy.

According to the policy, "members shall avoid any situation that will give rise to an actual or perceived conflict of interest," Gregg read, adding that factors include special interest as well as family or financial interest.

Goodwin said that when it comes to this proposal and its impact on the chamber, the result has been the opposite of any gain.

"Actually, this has had a negative impact on the chamber of commerce," she told her fellow selectmen. "We've lost chamber members over this."

Ultimately, the vote was 3-2 to place the zoning on the Nov. 4 ballot, with Estes, Goodwin and Little in favor, and Marshall and Gregg voting in opposition.