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Committee forwards proposed Land Development Code changes easing rules for pre‑1971 mobile home parks
Summary
The Bangor City Economic Development Committee reviewed a proposal to relax lot-size and related requirements for mobile home parks established before 1971, remove a financial‑hardship test, and require septic and water system documentation; the committee voted to refer the draft changes to full council.
Planning Officer Anya Colette told the Bangor City Economic Development Committee on May 5 that staff propose amending the Land Development Code to reduce lot‑area and lot‑width minimums for mobile home parks that predate 1971 and to remove a requirement that parks show financial hardship to qualify for reduced standards.
The proposal would lower lot‑area minimums cited in current ordinance language from 4,000 square feet to 2,500 square feet, while preserving existing building‑to‑building and lot‑line setbacks, Colette said. The draft also spells out limits on lot coverage and impervious surface to control how much of a lot a home or structure may occupy.
Colette said the proposal includes safeguards where on‑lot septic or shared wastewater systems are in use: individual on‑lot septic systems would be retained only where lots meet a 20,000‑square‑foot minimum; shared systems would require a site‑evaluator’s report showing continued adequacy; and any shared water supply would have to meet current city standards.
Anne Krieg, Economic Development Director, and the chair of the committee asked for questions and then accepted a motion to forward the draft ordinance language to the full City Council for consideration. Committee members registered no objections and the item was referred to council.
Why it matters: Colette told the committee that current rules leave older mobile home parks at a disadvantage — redevelopment under today’s rules could force removal of homes and reduce the stock of affordable housing. The proposed changes are intended to preserve housing capacity and give existing parks more flexibility without removing basic public‑health and setback protections.
The committee packet and staff memo provide the draft language, the proposed numeric reductions, and the condition language for septic and shared water systems. The referral sends the edits to the full council for public hearing and final action.
