HomeMy WebLinkAbout2005-04-01 Penjajawoc Marsh / Bangor Mall Management Commission Minutes
Penjajawoc/Stillwater Stakeholders Task Force
April 1, 2005 Meeting
Meeting Summary
Attendance: All stakeholders attended except Kevin Kane (Mike Waugh from Surry
Engineering took his place), and Carol Epstein.
Review of March 18 Meeting Summary: The spelling of Sam Coplon’s name was
corrected. The typo in the paragraph under W/S’s project was corrected to read “…it was
clarified that…”. The third paragraph on page 2 should read “golf courses…”. It was
agreed that Tentative Agreement in “Paragraph 5)” is duplicative and will be eliminated.
Update on Widewaters/BACORD/Audubon/BLT discussions: The meeting between
Sam Coplon and IF&W, DEP, BACORD and the Penobscot Valle Chapter of Maine
Audubon will take place on April 4 to consider appropriate treatment for the 250 foot
buffer zone in the Widewaters proposal. Minutes from the pre-application meeting on
March 22 were distributed. Hope noted that those minutes, while accurate, were not
complete. He noted that Widewaters appears to be working “very hard” to address water
quality issues and environmental concerns about snow removal, and expressed her
appreciation.
W/S’s Project: W/S is continuing conversations with landowners about mitigation
possibilities, and may have something to report in 2-3 weeks on those efforts. Any
mitigation plan will have to be approved by the US Army Corps of Engineers.
A new conceptual sketch of the project was distributed by Jim Parker and Mike Conley.
It was noted that the entrance road to the project is now envisioned to be on the south side
of the Blue Seal building, which places it within 70 feet of the Penjajawoc Stream. While
acknowledging this proximity is potentially problematic, Jim and Mark explained the
road is placed there because of safety and traffic flow concerns. Options which would
have placed the entrance road to the north side of the Blue Seal building have been
considered thoroughly, but rejected in favor of this “access management” approach..
Lucy wondered whether landowners could be asked to upgrade the banks of the stream
(to improve water quality) as a tradeoff for having the road this close. Jim Ring
responded that the Watershed Management study is currently developing several options
which address this issue directly
Review of Tentative Agreements: After considerable discussion, it was agreed that
Tentative Agreement #2 will prohibit “buildings” in the overlay zone between 75 to 250
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feet (as opposed to “structures” which could have prohibited a boardwalk). As noted, TA
#5 was eliminated as duplicative.
Davis and Rudnicki parcels: The Task Force confirmed its agreement to create a
straight line across these parcels to replace the current wavering line in the city’s Land
Use Concepts maps, which will define the boundaries of potential commercial
development.. While the agreed upon line will come within 250 feet of the marsh
“bulge” on Tom Davis’s land, it was noted that the line’s average distance from the
March on his land was approximately 500-600 feet.
Means for financing conservation: Ed Barrett has drafted language for a Task Force
recommendation to encourage the City Council to evaluate a TIF or similar financing
mechanisms. The funds generated by this mechanism will be substantial over a 10 year
period. There was broad positive reaction within the Task Force to this idea. Ed’s draft
was distributed and will be discussed at future meetings.
Status of Traffic, PSR Issues: Jim Ring reported that W/S’s traffic consultant Gorrell &
Palmer has developed some preliminary data which he and Sandi Duchesne have
reviewed. Based on this review and his own research, Jim presented a series of
conceptual ideas on traffic flow. These ideas take a comprehensive approach to relieving
traffic burden on Stillwater Avenue, and increasing capacity. Taken together, they
represent a potential alternative to the PSR. There were a number of questions about
specific aspects of Jim’s ideas, and expressions of appreciation for his creative thinking.
At this point, Jim will ask Gorrell and Palmer to build a traffic model based on
assumptions about “build out” into the potential commercial areas which have been
identified. This will be reviewed at future meetings.
Public Meeting: There was agreement to schedule a public meeting on April 28 at 7 p.m.
All stakeholders were strongly encouraged to attend. The meeting will explain the
Tentative Agreements the Task Force has reached, the tradeoffs which have been
considered and the rationale for them. Public feedback will be solicited.
Draft of Task Force recommendations: Ed distributed and briefly reviewed an initial
draft (For Discussion Purposes Only) of potential Task Force recommendations (which
did not include any recommendations on traffic issues). The draft will be discussed at
next week’s meeting.
Meeting Dates: The next meetings will be held on April 8 and April 22, 2005 from noon
to 3 p.m. in City Council Chambers. The Task Force meeting following the public
meeting will likely be held on Friday, May 6.
Meeting summary prepared by Jonathan W. Reitman, Task Force facilitator, 47 Ocean
Drive, Brunswick, ME 04011 (207) 729-1900, jreitman@blazenetme.net.
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