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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002-01-15 Planning Board Minutes ' , , ' PLANNING BOARD OF THE CITY OF BANGOR MEETING OF JANUARY 15,2002 ' MINUTES ' Board Members Present: Richard Fournier, Chairman Mary Ann Bostwick David Clark � Robert Guerette Robert Lingley Hal Wheeler , Ci Staff Present: Katherine Weber � James Ring , Peter Witham David Gould ,, News Media Present: None , Chairman Fournier called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. In the absence of Board Member Costlow,Associate Members Clark and Guerette were asked to alternate voting beginning with Mr. Guerette. ' APPROVAL OF MINUTES ' Item No. 1: Planning Board Approval of Minutes. Mr. Lingley moved to approve the Minutes of the January 2, 2002 Meeting as printed. ' Mrs. Bostwick seconded the motion. The Board voted 5 to 0 in favor. NEW BUSINESS ' Item No.2: Planning Board Discussion of the Comprehensive Plan 2000 in the Center Street,Broadway, Congress Street and French Street Area. ' Chairman Fournier explained that this was a"fact finding"and discussion of the Comprehensive Plan 2000 in the Center Street,Broadway, Congress Street and French Slxeet ' Area. ' , ' Planning Officer Weber made a power point presentation to refresh the Board on how the ' Comprehensive Plan 2000 was developed and adopted. This presenta.tion included information ' on the neighborhood itself, and a historic background as to how it was developed. She discussed the Crty's past Comprehensive Plans(the City has been engaged in comprehensive planning for over 60 years),and she discussed the various components of the Comprehensive Plan 2000 (the ' Existing Conditions Section which indicates what zoning is there now;the Synthesis Section wluch identifies the emerging issues, and the resources to deal with them, (the Planning Elements which include Housing, Economic Development, Transportation,etc; and,the , Implementation Program that includes recommendations and an Action Plan tied to a 5-year Capital Improvement Plan). Planning Officer Weber also discussed the various maps within in the Comprehensive , Plan 2000. Namely,the Development Policy Map which divides the City into three areas— urbanized inner core,the developing area where there is opportunity for growth(as the City has � the infrastructure in place for such development), and finally,the undeveloped area or rural area of the City. She also discussed the Zoning Policy Map which serves as a guide for future zoning within the City. ' Planning Officer Weber noted that an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan follows the same process of adopting the Plan. The Planning Board holds a public hearing,the amendment , is made available to the public 30 days prior to the hearing wherein two notices of the public hearing would need to be advertised. After the public hearing,the Board's recommendation would be forwarded to the City Council for action. The final step in the process would be the � adoption of the amendment by the Sta.te. Chairman Fournier indicated that the issue before the Board is whether or not the Board ' wishes to propose an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan 2000, or recommend that it remain the way it is with no changes. Chairman Fournier then asked for discussion. Mr. Guerette said that there were two zoning designations in this area,Residential and ' Government and Institutional Service that co-exist well. He also said that St. Joseph Hospital cannot apply for a zone change without purchasing and owning the property. He indicated that , he would like to hear comments from neighbors on to how well they are co-existing with the Hospital. He also suggested that a neighborhood forum be established. Mr. Lingley said that he felt that the Board needs to look at this issue as the City Council ' had charged them to do so. Mrs. Bostwick said that she would like to have input from residents in attendance at the meeting. Chairman Fournier then invited the audience to spealc. ' Paul Brown, a resident at 331 Center Street, said that he felt that the hospital was an intrusion into the neighborhood. He said that the neighborhood is slowly diminishing,and that , he felt squeezed out. He said that he would like the Comprehensive Plan to be a method of preserving a portion of the neighborhood as it exists. He has not had many problems with the Hospital as a neighbor,but would have concerns if the Hospital expands. He wanted to know � what could be done to preserve their neighborhood for those who would like to stay there and how to maintain the residential character of their neighborhood. � 2 , , 1 Penny Gray, 524 French Street,told the Board that her property is an island of residential , surrounded by institutional zoning, and that she was very concerned as to how this happened in a piecemeal manner. She was concerned about the marketa.bility of her lot as the hospital owns three parcels that surround her property. While she appreciated the fact that the hospital needs to , grow, she did not appreciate the manner in which it has been done. She was also concerned that the properties in her area were purchased for below market value. She said that she would hate to see this happen along Center Street as there are some nice single-family homes on this street. , Reno Pelletier,who own some properties in the area, said that he felt that if the Hospital extends their property along Congress Street,it would make it more"unfriendly"to people living ' there. He said that it was not a good area to live in. He was concerned about property values and the viability of this area as a residential area. Mr. Pelletier said that he felt squeezed out, and that there was more wind and dust from the open area caused by the open parking. , James Linnehan, 336 Center Street, said that he has always seen this area as a nice residential area. However,he said that people speed through this section of Center Street, and he , did not think that the Hospital generally was a good neighborhood. He added that the Hospital did not inform the neighbors when work was planned, or of the Hospital's construction plans. He said the parking lots were in disrepair and asked why the hospital couldn't expand at its ' campus on Outer Broadway. His major concern is that he did not want to see what happen on Broadway happen to Center Street. ' Anne Marie Messer, 94 Congress Street,told the Board that the hospital was not friendly, it was very noisy and congested,there was activity going on all day and a11 night, and that she ' wanted to know if is there was anything that could be done to slow down the Hospital's development. ' Wayne Woodford, Chief Operating Officer for St. Joseph Hospital, said he could understand the concerns of the neighbors. He indicated that the Hospital did not have a general overall plan to purchase properties. Over time,the Hospital has purchased properties as the ' funds were available. He said that the Hospital was ma.king every effort to be a good neighbor. Mr. Lingley asked if the Hospital has any plans to construct any new buildings. Mr. ' Woodford said that, other than the current construction that they are doing,they had no plans. Mr. Lingley asked why the Hospital bought the additional properties. Mr. Woodford indicated that the Hospital has been buying properties as they become available and when the Hospital has ' had the funds to do so. Their major need right now is for parking. Mrs. Bostwick asked if the Hospital had any long-range plans Mr. Woodford indicated ' that,at this time,they did not have any long-range plans. Mrs. Dorothy Warren, a Congress Street resident,told the Board that when hospital , started to expand(some years ago), someone told her that the Hospital was required by the City to provide a buffer zone of one row of homes to protect the neighborhood from becoming all hospita.l(use). , , 3 ' ' Mr. Wheeler asked if the Board was under any obligation to make a recommendation to ' the City Council at this meeting. Chairman Fournier indicated that there was no obligation to do so. ' Mr. Clark said that he did not to want to rush into any decisions. Mr. Lingley said that he felt that the Board needs to address the comprehensive planning , issues,but cannot address the non-planning issues such as the Hospital's lack of public relations efforts. He also agreed with Mr. Gurerette's suggestion that a cooperative advisory board be established,and he hoped that the Hospital would take that recommendation. Mr. Lingley said ' that. if the Board is to make any recommendation to change the Comprehensive Plan 2000,they needed to decide where the Hospital's growth ends and where the neighborhood remains. ' Mrs. Bostwick agreed and said that she was concerned that the Hospital does not have any long-range plan. She too wanted more time to review this area and consider the appropriate ' course of action. Mr. Wheeler said that there were two or three possible recommendations that the Board ' could make to the City Council: (1)no recommendation for any change; (2)recommend a restriction on future hospital expansion; and(3) adopt a piece meal approach to how zone changes are made. He said that, if the Board adopts a piece meal or a reactive position,namely ' reacting to the concerns of individual property owners,more damage may be done than good. Mr. Wheeler then moved to delay the final discussion and recommendation to the Board's second meeting in February(February 19�'). Mr. Lingley seconded the motion which carried by ' a vote of 5 to 0. There being no further items for discussion,the meeting was adjourned. ' , , ' , , , 4 '