Planning board schedules June 11 hearing on proposed Buffum Road conversion to light-manufacturing use

The North Berwick Planning Board voted to accept a conditional use permit application from P & S Babin Holdings LLC to convert a former cannabis cultivation site at 19 Buffum Road (Map 015 Lot 003) into office and light-manufacturing space, and scheduled a public hearing for Thursday, June 11, 2026 at 6:30 p.m. in Town Hall, room 212.

Stuart Mitchell, representing P & S Babin Holdings LLC, told the board that the company plans to gut units 1 and 2 to create offices, a bathroom, a break room and a conference room, retain unit 3 for storage, add windows and remove the garage doors. Mitchell said the current septic system that serves units 1–3 is undersized; the applicant plans to abandon and redesign the septic to serve an estimated 30 employees and allow unit 4 to tie in later if needed.

Planner Matt LeConte, the town planning coordinator, advised board members that the conditional use review focuses on neighborhood impacts and on whether the proposed use is less nonconforming than the current use. LeConte said the applicant will provide written responses to the performance standards in the conditional-use section of the zoning ordinance and that, once the submission is complete, the CU process can take about a month to six weeks depending on Planning Board workload.

Board members pressed the applicant on operational impacts. Jack Olea asked whether traffic patterns would change; Mitchell said the business expects about 30 employees and that traffic should not substantially increase. When Mark Reed asked about deliveries and outgoing shipments, Mitchell said the site typically receives one to two pallet deliveries per month and uses FedEx for outgoing products, which he said would have minimal traffic impact.

During discussion, Reed asked whether the board needed to follow the procedure in Section 6.9.6 of the zoning ordinance; LeConte confirmed the application will be evaluated against the ordinance’s conditional-use performance standards as part of the public hearing process.

Mark Reed moved to accept the conditional use application; Mark Cahoon seconded and the board voted 4-0 to accept the application. Reed then moved to schedule a public hearing on Thursday, June 11, 2026 at 6:30 p.m. in room 212 of Town Hall; Cahoon seconded and the board voted 4-0 to set the hearing.

At the end of the meeting, staff member Bonnie Michaud introduced a centralized projects binder to help organize review materials as project activity increases. The board adjourned at 7:17 p.m.

Next step: the applicant must file written responses to the ordinance’s conditional-use performance standards; the public hearing on the application is set for June 11, 2026 at 6:30 p.m. in Town Hall, room 212.