North Berwick planning board tables Big Boys Truck storage-yard request after extended public hearing

The Town of North Berwick Planning Board on June 12 tabled a conditional-use application from Big Boys Truck and Heavy Equipment Repair LLC (applicant Jason Day) for an amended auto service facility that would add a storage-yard use at 16 Linscott Road (Map 2, Lot 30). The board voted 5-0 to delay final action and asked the applicant and the landowner to deliver a complete, scaled site plan, a current survey, and a screening/buffering plan before the board reconvenes the matter.

The application drew an extended public hearing and substantial questioning from the board and neighbors about visibility from Route 9, the number and status of vehicles on site, hours of operation, hazardous-material handling and whether some of the paved/drive areas sit on state-owned right-of-way. “I was told I look like a junkyard. Apologies for that. I work on everything,” applicant Jason Day said about how his property appears. “I only applied for the storage yard because that’s what I was told I had to do,” he added, describing a business that repairs heavy equipment and sometimes retains vehicles until bills are paid.

Town staff and the board guided the discussion toward specific standards in the North Berwick land-use code. Matt McColl, identified in the meeting as the code-enforcement officer and planning liaison, repeatedly advised the board that conditional-use findings require site plans drawn to scale and information about parking, buffering and performance standards (Article 5 and conditional-use procedure references were discussed during the hearing). McColl told the board that the application packet lacked a complete, scaled plan that the board needs to make findings under the zoning ordinance.

Public commenters were split. Several neighbors said the site has long hosted heavy trucking uses and urged the board to support the business. “I’d like to see this board support this business,” said Dave Cutter, a resident and former selectman. Other neighbors raised concerns about night deliveries, loud tow-truck mufflers, potential groundwater impacts from vehicle fluids and the use of state-owned land adjacent to the property for turning trucks. Landowner Michelle Paradis told the board she has monitored improvements and described historical industrial use of the parcel.

Board members and staff discussed options including a vegetated berm and fast-growing trees as a phased buffer, a possible eight-foot fence, limits on the number of vehicles stored on site tied to parking requirements, hours-of-dropoff restrictions and a requirement that off-site (state) turning needs not rely on the applicant’s buffering. Members also asked the applicant to identify precisely how many “parts vehicles” would remain on site; Jason Day and neighbors referenced a prior application that requested 25 parking spaces with two “parts” vehicles.

After deliberation the board moved to table the application and requested the following before reopening the matter: an up-to-date property survey (to establish property lines and clarify where state land begins), a scaled site plan showing proposed parking layout for the 25-space request, a phased landscape/screening plan (the board suggested a modest phased planting schedule such as five trees per year to create buffer over time), and documentation needed to support the conditional-use findings in the zoning ordinance. The motion to table passed unanimously, 5-0.

The board’s vote preserves the public record and the applicant’s right to return with the requested materials; no substantive conditions were adopted at the meeting. Planning staff indicated that once the materials are submitted, the board’s staff will prepare findings of fact and conditions for the board to consider at a subsequent meeting.

What happens next: Jason Day and the landowner were told to work with code enforcement and planning staff to assemble the survey and a scaled plan showing the requested parking layout, proposed buffer species and locations, and any easement or access agreements with the state. The application will be re-noticed when the board receives a complete submission and the staff-prepared findings.

Votes at a glance: The motion to table the Big Boys Truck and Heavy Equipment Repair conditional-use application passed 5-0.