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Planning commission forwards shoreland ordinance material to DEP and lists detailed zoning clarifications for follow up
Summary
Marjorie Stratton submitted attested marked‑up copies of proposed shoreland ordinance changes to DEP; the commission recorded numerous CEO questions about structure definitions, parking, cell towers, wells, lot sizes in the Village Overlay District, campsite rules, and missing land‑use categories that staff will address at the next meeting.
At the March 12 session the Vinalhaven Planning Commission confirmed it had submitted proposed Shoreland Zone ordinance revisions to the Maine Department of Environmental Protection and cataloged a series of zoning questions raised by the town CEO.
Town Manager Marjorie Stratton reported she had sent attested, marked‑up copies of the current ordinance and a version showing proposed changes to DEP reviewer Colin Clark, and that DEP had requested those formal attested documents. The submission related to shoreland zoning in areas such as Indian Creek, Carver’s Harbor and Carver’s Pond.
The minutes record a detailed list of outstanding clarifications requested by CEO Justin VanDongan: typographical errors and duplicate numbering in the structures table; whether "non‑residential, non‑commercial" structures include industrial uses; whether accessory structures for commercial uses are included; whether the CEO may issue permits for commercial parking facilities or essential services (for example, cell towers) without Planning Board review; standards the CEO should apply when considering well permits (noting most wells on the island are drilled with hydraulic fracturing methods, per a commissioner comment); and whether changes to maximum lot coverage or the minimum lot size in the Village Overlay District should be adjusted given many existing properties are nonconforming under the current 20,000 square‑foot minimum.
The commission also noted that campgrounds are currently allowed only in the Residential/Commercial area per the land use chart and that a pending private campground permit raises the question of whether the proposal is commercial or private. Page references in the land use tables were identified as omitting manufacturing, warehousing and research facilities in some districts, and the off‑street parking standard limiting a parking space to a single use was questioned for downtown applicability.
Commission members asked staff to bring responses and revised language to the next meeting; these items were placed on the agenda for follow up.
