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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2005-01-11 Planning Board Minutes PLANNING BOARD NEIGHBORHOOD WORKSHOP JANUARY 11, 2005, ABRAHAM LINCOLN SCHOOL MINUTES Board Members Present: Robert Guerette, Chairman David Clark Hal Wheeler Nathaniel Rosenblatt Ryan King Patricia Cummings Bill Masters Jonathan Siegel City Staff Present: Katherine Weber James Ring Peter Witham David Gould Lynn Johnson City Councilors Present: Mayor Farrington Councilor Gratwick Councilor Hawes News Media Present: WABI-TV WLBZ-TV Bangor Daily News Chairman Guerette introduced himself and welcomed those attending the meeting. He explained that the reason for the Workshop is to provide for an open forum to talk about the City’s Comprehensive Plan Update. Chairman Guerette explained that the Comprehensive Plan is something that has been around for a long time and all of the information that goes into the Plan dates back to 1940 when the City started paying attention to what is happening around town. Interest was in which streets were large main streets, parks, and how to use the land to make Bangor a pleasing, productive, and economically viable place to live and work. In 2000, the City adopted its most recent version of the Comprehensive Plan. By law, the City is required to update the Comprehensive Plan every 10 years. The City has decided that they do not want to wait 10 years to make an update. They want citizen input into the plan halfway through to make any mid-course corrections, if needed, to make sure that the Plan is a policy that suits everyone as best as possible. He indicated that this is not a new version, just an update. Chairman Guerette explained that the meeting was being audio taped, as all Planning Board Meetings need to be taped for the record. He asked that those speaking introduce themselves, and then asked the Planning Board Members to introduce themselves. After the introductions, Chairman Guerette explained that when an issue comes before the Planning Board, the Board is charged with deciding if a particular application meets the City’s Ordinances and the Land Use Code that the City has adopted. What the Board is discussing at this workshop is a level larger. The Board will be talking about the zones that allow certain types of developments, where they can go, and whether or not they are appropriate. The Board will be discussing transition zones. An example of a transition zone is where a residential neighborhood might be located next to a mall and the transition area is the zone line in between the two of them. In these instances there could be concerns by both parties. Chairman Guerette indicated that the Board would like for participants to come forward and introduce themselves by name and address. Chairman Guerette said that if the participants have questions or issues, the Board is here to listen. He explained the order in which people would be given an opportunity to speak. First, those people that live in this quadrant, then people who live in any of the other quadrants, and then anyone else would be allowed to speak. He noted that there will be three more neighborhood workshops and that everyone is invited to attend and speak. Chairman Guerette then ask Planning Officer Weber to make some remarks. Planning Officer Weber welcomed those in the audience and indicated that the Planning Board and Staff are here to listen to their questions. She said that she hoped that everyone filled out a Survey and signed the Attendance Sheet. Ms. Weber explained that this is one of four neighborhood meetings proposed around the City. At each meeting, participants will be asking to fill out an Attendance Sheet and a Survey. Ms. Weber said that there will be more follow- up and a sharing of the information as this progresses. Ms. Weber explained what the Comprehensive Plan Update is. She presented facts about the quadrant being discussed. Ms. Weber said that Bangor has a long history of planning and was the first community in Maine to have a Zoning Ordinance. She indicated that this will be the fourth Comprehensive Plan project done by the City and this Update will be to 2 document the changes that have occurred since the 2000 Update. 2005 is an interim as ten years is a standard time for a Comprehensive Plan. Ms. Weber indicated that there has been a lot of activity that has taken place. The Comprehensive Plan 2005 Update will either validate existing policies, or establish some new policies for the 21 transition areas that we will be focussing on during the update process. Ms. Weber noted that there have been new studies done since 2000 including a new Airport Master Plan and a new Waterfront Plan. Other transition areas include Bass Park, and the Stillwater Avenue corridor. A transportation study has just been completed for the Stillwater Avenue corridor and there is more information on the natural resources of the City. The Update will serve as a guideline and blueprint for the Board to look at planning and requested zone changes for the next five years. Ms. Weber indicated that the Comprehensive Plan is the guiding document for land use, policies for housing, transportation, natural resources, and infrastructure. Ms. Weber explained that the Comprehensive Plan is divided into four sections that describe the existing conditions, synthesis section, emerging issues including infrastructure, demographics, environment, and land use patterns. Another Section contains Planning Elements for each one of these specific areas with suggestions for programs and strategies to implement the policies. The Comprehensive Plan is also considered by the City Council in its deliberations for the Capital Improvement Program. There are a number of on-going projects that have been underway since 2000 and prior to 2005, and will continue into the next five-year period. Some of these projects include Downtown Revitalization, Waterfront Redevelopment, the Waterworks Project, the Maine Business Enterprise Park, Bangor International Airport, and Bass Park. There is a broadening of the revenue base within the City and that is taking advantage of the development projects that we hope to attract. Other considerations are neighbor preservation, conservation natural and cultural resources, as well as, expansion of City forest and the woods, and the enhancement of the parks and playgrounds. Ms. Weber noted that there are six evolving trends that policies will focus on in the new Comprehensive Plan 2005 Update. Bangor is a regional service center. Population and labor force statistics indicate a moderate grown in retail and service sectors with more specific growth in the medical, the financial and the technical sectors. The trend is for increasing participation in the global market, interest in increasing cultural and artistic growth, and a special interest in revitalization of the Downtown. Planning Officer Weber discussed the quadrant under consideration at this meeting indicating that there are 11 transition areas in this quadrant. She explained that this was the beginning of the dialogues at neighborhood meetings where the Board will listen to and get ideas. The surveys will help to develop 3 strategies, goals, and elements. After these meetings, drafts of the Plan will be developed, there will be more workshops to share those drafts and specific interests in those parts of the plan will be engaged in the process. When the Plan comes to a final draft, there will be public hearings held and then the City Council will review and adopt the Plan sometime in the Summer of 2005. Ms. Weber explained that the City of Bangor’s population in 2000 was 31,469. In 1990 it was 33,181. Bangor lost over 1,000 people in the last Census. Ms. Weber indicated that there are 9,899 people living in this quadrant of the City and this is down 668 people from the 1990 Census. Housing units in this area are 4,793 units in 2000 and that is down 152 units from the 1990 Census. The mean population age for the City is 36.1 years and the largest population is the 18-29 age group followed by seniors and school age children. The projections done by the State Planning Office continue to indicate a decline with a projected loss of 536 people by July 2005 and in 2010 a loss of 690 people over the 2000 population. This is an indication that the population is at least stable, but not increasing dramatically. Ms. Weber indicated that this is a quadrant that has quite a few facilities. It contains part of the urban core, part of the Mall area, some undeveloped land now being subdivided, State of Maine facilities, Bangor Mental Health Institute, the Levinson Center, the Maine Department of Transportation facilities, the employment security building and the Veteran’s Home. Other facilities include the Federal Building, the Post Office, Eastern Maine Development Corporation, Eastern Maine Medical Center, St. Joseph Hospital, the Bangor Children’s Museum, City Hall, the Library, two Fire Stations, seven schools, seven parks, and three Historic Districts. Also, this quadrant includes the State Street corridor, the Broadway corridor, the Great Fire District, the Downtown Central Business District, and 19 historic landmarks. Ms. Weber indicated that these will be part of the inventory process for the draft plan. Since 1990 and 2005 there have been several developments including: the 150-bed Maine Veteran’s Home, a 70-lot subdivision (Rolling Meadows Subdivision), and the Waterworks has been through three develop proposals and is still struggling to recreate itself. There has been a lot of expansion of the commercial area along Hogan Road area with car dealerships, Sam’s Club, and new restaurants. St. Joseph Hospital had a 71,000-square foot expansion and parking. Eastern Maine Technical College added a large Katahdin Hall, the Library expanded, a new Fire Station was constructed, and Eastern Maine Medical Center has gone through four large development projects including the parking garage, ambulatory care facilities, the Webber III building, and other specialty services. The Downtown has also seen some growth. Ms. Weber noted that at the next workshop, the other side of the Kenduskeag Stream will be looked at. 4 Ms. Weber also discussed traffic counts for the major roads in this quadrant as well as the transition areas in this area. Mr. Guerette asked for comments from the audience. Mr. Ken Buckley, of 207 Forest Ave, expressed his concern about traffic on Stillwater Avenue. He asked whether or not there have been preparations to enlarge Stillwater Avenue or make additional access roads to it. Mr. Buckley asked how well the commercial zones are going to be defined from the residential areas, especially in the Mt. Hope Avenue and Stillwater Avenue regions. He said that people use the Forest Avenue area to get from Stillwater Avenue to Mount Hope Avenue as a through street. Mr. Rosenblatt noted that it was his understanding that a connection with the new shopping area along with some improvements to Stillwater Avenue has been mandated by the State. Mr. James Ring, City Engineer, indicated when there is any large development or a change in land use, it generates a certain amount of traffic. The threshold requirement of the Maine Department of Transportation requires that development get a Traffic Movement Permit. The Parkade development will be required to do improvements to mitigate impacts from their development. In theory, development has to make improvements at the development’s expense. For each development, there is a cumulative effect that needs to be evaluated for the overall impacts for the future. One of the things that Bangor has done with the Metropolitan Planning Organization at Bangor Area Comprehensive Transportation Study (BACTS) is look at the Stillwater Avenue corridor. That study does recommend some improvements over time to ease traffic impacts and to make that portion of Stillwater Avenue more residential in character. It also looks at the other end where the commercial activity is. Mr. Masters asked if it is possible to put a crossing bridge over Stillwater Avenue as there is a school and a little league field in the area and is dangerous for children to cross over Stillwater Avenue to get to them. He said that he could live with the traffic if you could get across Stillwater Avenue without danger. Mr. Ring indicated that the study includes recommendations to provide for vehicular traffic but there is a limited width to Stillwater Avenue so there are general concepts proposed for that section of Stillwater Avenue. One suggestion is better lane definitions to maximize pedestrian friendliness. A pedestrian bridge is not a suggestion, and it might involve some ADA issues. Mr. Masters said that he would like to see a solution to allow kids to cross over Stillwater Avenue. He said that traffic is better since the I-95 interchange 5 opened. However, when the Bangor Parkade project opens up there will be a traffic light and an alternating light with queueing cars. Mr. Masters said that he would hate to be reactionary, but would like to be proactive. Mr. Ring indicated that this was looked at the time of the Parkade process. A traffic study was required by MDOT and looked at by the City. Ms. Christina Debold, Palm Street, thanked the Board and the Planning Office for having the neighborhood meeting. She indicated that she is interested in keeping the integrity of the residential neighborhoods and feels that the residential neighborhoods are under pressure. She said that she was surprised to see that the population is going down. She said that she hoped that the residents of the City would be given priority. She also noted that she was skiing in the City Forest and the City of Bangor should be congratulated for having it. Mr. Dean Beaupain, a Clyde Road resident who also owns a property in the Broadway District, indicated that he recently converted a residential unit into an office. He said that he did not feel that office use was incompatible with residential use in the Historic Districts. He also said that he did not feel that off- street parking in the Historic Districts needed to be provided. He noted that there is no need for off-street parking in the downtown area but there is on Broadway. He told the Board that he would like to see some flexibility as it is very expensive to own and maintain these buildings. He said that he felt that this is a good time to look at this. Mr. John Rohman, 198 Broadway, told the Board that he felt that the historic fabric and the residential fabric is one of the areas we need to keep as sacred as we can. Between John Bapst High School and Broadway Park there are a number of homes that were multi-family homes that are now shifting back to single-family homes. He noted that 12 or 15 years ago, the Planning Board and the City Council looked at that area. Because of policies made at that time, people are fixing those homes, and in the tree streets there has been substantial improvement. He said that he applauded the City for holding the line in maintain the sanctity of the residential districts. Mr. Rosenblatt noted that the previous speaker asked the Board to look at offices uses being incompatible. Mr. Rohman said that he felt that they are incompatible. He noted the Sun Mortgage Company building that is on the corner of Cumberland Street and Broadway. He said that there were a number of folks who said they wanted to keep it residential and not have it switched over to business. There are residential folks that feel that it would have been a domino effect to allow commercial uses. Mr. Rohman said that there is a need to draw a line in the sand to maintain the residential character of the City. Mr. Rohman noted a parcel of land located on Union Street abutting Interstate 95. 6 Several years ago, an applicant requested a zone change on this lot for commercial use saying that it would not be rebuilt for residential use. The City Council denied the request. Today someone is building residential buildings there. Mr. Masters indicated that he agreed that the integrity of residential area needs to be maintained, and noted that there are many unique residential properties. He indicated that he felt that these buildings should be saved, but several were converted to multi-family units and are being used and taxed to a point that they are overused. He said that he could not help but wonder if allowing professional office space would allow for the use of that property to become more economically viable. He said that he did not know of any attorney, doctor, dentist, or accountant that would buy one of these properties and allow it to degrade and was not sure that single-family uses are practical. That type of flexibility would help us to save some of these properties. Mr. Rohman said that the “proof is in the pudding,” and the reality is that people are buying these historical buildings and turning them back into single- family homes. While he said that he understood the argument for putting in high-end professional office space, he would like to see more residential activity because introducing business activity takes away from the residential activity. Mr. Masters indicated that with all of the doctors and attorneys, that he did not feel that office use in these large buildings is intrusive in the hands of professionals who can put the money into them. He said that there was a need for some reasonableness. Mr. Wheeler said that he felt that the Board came here to this meeting to listen and not to talk or debate. He suggested that the Board not debate the issues but make themselves available to hear the opinions of the public. Ms. Pam Miller, 191 Parkview Avenue, expressed her appreciation for the survey. Ms. Miller indicated that she walks on the streets, and noted that there are not enough sidewalks or crosswalks. She said that the existing sidewalks because of their condition, are very easy to slide into the road on a winter day. She said that she didn’t need a survey to know that. Ms. Miller said that we have a wonderful opportunity. The waterfront with plain old nature interacting with wonderful festivals is done without a lot of money. She said that she did not feel that the City should be sponsoring a “5-Star Hotel.” She said that she felt that there should be a way of connecting the City to Bar Harbor, and to use our resources for family vacations. She said that she felt that Bangor could be the family vacation capital of the United States. She said that they felt that there was a wonderful opportunity here and felt that the City should do more to advertise. 7 Ms. Gwenthalyn Phillips thanked the Board and said that she agreed with everything Ms. Miller said. Ms. Phillips said that the Comprehensive Plan process gives us an opportunity to look at where we want to be. She said that people do want to come here as they want to be in a place where there is culture, quality of life, and neighborhoods. Ms. Phillips felt that the technical sector pay is better than retail sector pay. She asked where the City wanted to be in 15 year. Ms. Phillips indicated that she felt that hospitals are very important but when you look at how many housing lots have been lost because of the expansion of St. Joseph Hospital that maybe it is time to go up and not out. She said that there has been a great deal of improvement in the Curve Street area and said she would like to see affordable housing available in our City and not just high-end housing. She indicated that she would like to protect the neighborhoods. Mr. Paul Svendsen, 89 Howard Street, told the Board that he was on the Planning Board during the time of last update. He said that in his experience when you start letting professional businesses in then property values are going to increase. Shortly, there will be another professional business going in and soon it just eats at the neighborhood and becomes a professional office park. Mr. Svendsen indicated that there are places for businesses and places for the neighborhoods. He said that it is the Planning Board’s job to preserve the neighborhoods. Mr. Svendsen also expressed his concern for people using Howard and Garland Streets as thru streets. He suggested that Howard Street be made a one-way street and asked that this issue be revisited. Mr. Mike Robinson, a Parkview Avenue resident, had comments about the on-going waste water separation project in this neighborhood. He asked that if there were more projects in the area, that the subcontractor be asked to do a better job with communicating with the neighbors as to when and where the construction would be taking place. Mr. Robinson said that his basement got flooded and other people had problems. Mr. Robinson also said that he hoped that the Dakin Pool would not be closed. He said that it is a nice pool and that perhaps through public fund raising, enough money could be raised to preserve it. Ms. Jody Jellison, a Howard Street resident, had concerns about traffic. She said that many people use Howard Street to pass through to the Mall. She said that are a large number of schools and parks in this area and anything that can be done to solve the persistent traffic problems would be appreciated. She said that roads like Hogan Road can handle traffic, but the side streets cannot. Mr. Bill Phillips, 75 South Park Street, told the Board that he lives in a nice neighborhood and walks to work in downtown everyday. He said that this is a 8 real selling point of the City. He expressed his concern that when old houses are destroyed by fire it may be difficult to rebuild them because of their lot sizes and he asked the Board to look at this issue. He said that the Zoning Ordinance needs to reflect the type of housing that exists within the neighborhoods. Ms. Lucy Quimby, a Kenduskeag Avenue resident, told the Board that she has an office at 43 Columbia Street that is a residential building that became a mixed use. She noted that this building is a community within the building and a wonderful experience. She agreed that a mix of professional office use and residential uses were appropriate and compatible uses. Ms. Quimby also asked the Board to think about the Penjajawoc Stream that does not meet the Federal water quality standards and needs to be cleaned up. She noted that the Stream flows through the Mall and that BACORD and the Audubon Society have a spring clean up to clear the area of trash and make it an attractive place to have lunch or wander through. Ms. Quimby also noted a series of sites to go birding such as the Cemetery and Bangor Mental Health Institute. She said she would like to see these areas be connected in order to go from one to another, as she felt that this would be another outdoor gem for recreation and would really add to the quality of life here. Ms. Pam Taylor, 74 Jennifer Lane, said that she was happy to hear that people wished to preserve the neighborhoods. She said that she lives in Stillwater Gardens that is no longer a neighborhood because of the development next door. She indicated that she is very concerned about commitments for a 150-foot buffer zone with trees and shrubs. She was also concerned with the detention pond as it is dangerous for the area children and contains mosquitoes. Mr. George Burgoyne, a Center Street resident and former Planning Board Member, indicated that he is concerned about the enforcement of plans and agreements. He said that screening and light and noise standards should be looked at and that stronger language would give the Code Office more to go on for enforcement. David Nealley, of 107 Sherman Avenue, noted that there is traffic congestion on Kenduskeag Avenue as the path of least resistance is the tendency for drivers. He said that having more stop signs would mitigate excess traffic on side roads. Mr. Nealley said that he would like to see healthy compromises on residential and commercial development. Mr. Nealley noted that Bangor is the center of the region to provide the commercial activity, hospitals, retail, financial, and legal services. He said that there needs to be healthy balance with commercial development. Suzanne Kelly, of 380 French Street, felt that the City should be made more pedestrian friendly by connecting our resources from the Downtown to the 9 City Forest, and to the Kenduskeag Stream. Ms. Kelly said that she felt that we have a lot of natural, commercial and residential resources. She said that open spaces should be preserved and that the Mall area should be more pedestrian friendly. She felt that more should be done to encourage pedestrians and neighborhoods. Ms. Valerie Carter, 112 Birch Street, indicated that the schools are wonderful but one of the problems in the winter is that the sidewalks are not well cleared of snow forcing kids to walk in the streets. She said that this is a health issue when you take kids to school in cars rather than have them walk to school. Ms. Carter commended Mr. Masters for his concerns about sidewalks in new subdivisions. Mr. Mike Robinson asked if it would be possible to put a cone in front of the YMCA because of the traffic on Hammond Street. Mr. Robinson commended Mr. Ring for the entrance to the waterfront. He noted how wonderful the brickwork is, and added that it makes a spectacular entrance into the waterfront. Mr. Bill Phillips noted the diverse socioeconomic groups within the community. Ms. Lucy Quimby told the Board that her daughter is in college in Burlington, Vermont. While visiting, she went to City Hall to see how they do things. She told the Board that Burlington Vermont has a committee of architects that decide how buildings are going to look. Mr. Paul Svendsen noted that in Massachusetts there are people who are taking a one-quarter acre lot, then tearing it down, and building a million dollar home. He suggested that the Board look into lot sizes that are disproportionate to the surrounding properties. Chairman Guerette noted that this is the first of four meetings. He thanked those attending, adding that it was a great turn out. He noted that the Board will be receiving these comments at all four meetings, taking stock, and incorporating them into an update. Then there will be a Public Hearing to go over the final offerings. Chairman Guerette noted that the next meeting covering the west side urban area will be in two weeks at Fairmont School on January 25, 2005. As there were no further comments, the Meeting was adjourned at 8:25 p.m. 10