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Wayne select board extends moratorium on RV‑park and campground development for 180 days
Summary
After a public hearing featuring residents and the moratorium advisory committee, the Town of Wayne Select Board voted unanimously to extend its moratorium on RV‑park and campground development for an additional 180 days, citing unresolved land‑use and environmental concerns and ongoing ordinance work.
The Town of Wayne Select Board voted unanimously to extend its moratorium on RV‑park and campground development for an additional 180 days, after a public hearing in which committee members and residents urged more time to finish ordinance revisions.
Betsy Clark, chair of the moratorium advisory committee, outlined the committee’s timeline and work and asked the board to extend the moratorium to allow the planning board review and a town vote. "I respectfully ask that the select board votes in favor of extending the moratorium... for an additional hundred and 80 days," Clark said, summarizing the committee’s research, public meetings and consultations with other towns and counsel.
Ted Tucci, a committee member, told the board the original proposal that prompted the moratorium—an RV resort adjacent to Androscoggin Lake—posed risks to the town’s rural character and to water quality, and the committee had prepared draft performance standards and a separate draft licensing/police‑power ordinance. "Those problems clearly still exist," Tucci said, noting repeated algae blooms and the committee’s coordination with the planning board ahead of a public hearing in January.
After public comment and board questions over timing and legal limits on extensions, a board member read a motion citing "30 a MRS 43 56" and finding both that (a) current land‑use ordinances are inadequate to prevent serious public harm from commercial campground development and (b) the advisory committee is making reasonable progress to address the problems. The motion asked the board to extend the ordinance enacted 04/16/2024 (retroactive to 01/09/2024) for an additional 180 days beyond 01/03/2025. The motion was seconded and approved on roll call (Lloyd: yes; Henry: yes; Trent: yes; Mary Anne: yes; Hazel: yes).
Why it matters: The extension preserves the advisory committee’s time to finish drafting ordinance language and gives the planning board time to hold its scheduled hearing in January; the committee plans to send proposed amendments back to the select board for any final action at a subsequent town meeting.
Next steps: The advisory committee will present its proposals to the planning board in January; if the planning board recommends changes, those will return to the select board and may be placed before town voters at a future town meeting. The extension leaves the moratorium in place while those procedural steps proceed.
