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Cushing Selectmen direct CEO to apply Site Plan Review Ordinance to Pleasant Point/Davis Point property
Summary
The Board of Selectmen voted Aug. 8 to direct CEO Scott Bickford to apply Cushing’s 2011 Site Plan Review Ordinance to a property at Pleasant Point Road and Davis Point Road after repeated complaints; the motion carried 5-0-1 with one abstention.
The Cushing Board of Selectmen on Aug. 8 directed the town CEO to apply the town’s Site Plan Review Ordinance to a property at the corner of Pleasant Point Road and Davis Point Road after Planning Board complaints about waste disposal, parking, road-edge crumbling and work in the roadway.
Planning Board Chairman Daniel Remian urged the board to use the 2011 ordinance, saying it sets standards and permitting procedures for non-residential uses and that the property’s commercial development appears incompatible with surrounding residences. Remian said past involvement by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection had been “wishy washy” in its decisions, and the Planning Board wants the town ordinance enforced.
Selectman Daniel Staples reported that the town attorney advised that a comprehensive plan is not required for the town to administer the Site Plan Review Ordinance. CEO Scott Bickford told the board he is willing to administer the ordinance and use it as the basis for his findings. Selectman Martha Marchut and others pressed the board to be prepared to move forward rather than return to the drawing board if the CEO concludes the ordinance applies.
ACTION: Selectman Daniel Staples made the motion, seconded by Selectman Martha Marchut, to direct CEO Scott Bickford to apply the Site Plan Review Ordinance and to use it as a basis for his findings. The motion carried 5-0-1; Selectman Laurie Haynes abstained.
During public comment, property owner Peter Lynch asked whether the town has authority to cite a junkyard ordinance or regulate hazardous waste disposal. Lynch warned that potential hazardous waste could irreversibly contaminate groundwater, Cushing’s drinking-water source. Kate Holland Lynch asked how enforcement would be ensured; the CEO said the landowner received a 30-day cleanup notice and could face fines up to $100 per day for noncompliance and possible contempt proceedings if fines are unpaid.
The board’s direction places the onus on the CEO to pursue site-plan permitting and enforcement under local ordinance; any further formal enforcement steps or fines will depend on the CEO’s findings and next actions by the Board of Selectmen.
