Developer seeks Brookside Farms Phase 2 approval; wetlands, DEP review flagged
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Summary
Developer Jason Levante presented a pre-application for Brookside Farms Phase 2: 19 single-family lots on 51 acres, ~59% open space, five wetland crossings and an estimated 8,600 sq ft of new wetland impact; planning staff said the project will require Maine DEP and Army Corps review and a site-walk is to be scheduled when weather allows.
Jason Levante, the developer for Brookside Farms Phase 2, told the Tyler Wells Planning Board on Dec. 1 that the proposal is a single-family subdivision of 19 lots on roughly 51 acres with about 59% designated as open space. "What's proposed are 19 new lots," Levante said during the board's pre-application presentation.
Levante and Harry Firdress of Acorn Engineering described five proposed wetland crossings — four for the roadway and one for a driveway — and said wetlands were delineated on the site by Chris Cope. The plan shows an estimated 8,600 square feet of new wetland impact for Phase 2 and a cumulative wetland impact of about 36,000 square feet when combined with Phase 1. Levante said the project will require Maine Department of Environmental Protection review (a site-location major amendment) and separate Army Corps review for wetland impacts.
Planning staff member Mike said a revised plan responding to earlier comments had been submitted the morning of the meeting and recommended a site walk. Board members debated whether to schedule the sidewalk/site walk before winter weather arrives; staff noted sidewalk site walks can be held Jan. 1–Apr. 1 and suggested postponing until conditions are suitable. The board voted unanimously to defer scheduling the sidewalk and revisit the matter at the next meeting.
The board also discussed whether deleting two lots from the originally approved Phase 1 plan would require an amendment. Staff advised the change would be handled as an amendment in the full preliminary application and may require renumbering lots and updated plans. On traffic, staff said the combined project is not expected to trigger the town's traffic movement threshold of 100 peak-hour trips; estimated peak-hour trips were described as roughly 40.
Next steps: the board received the pre-application, requested that the applicant include amended plans and wetlands setbacks in the preliminary submission, and will reschedule the site walk when weather permits.
