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Board finds CFMA property application complete, schedules special hearing on pier and road plan
Summary
After lengthy procedural review, the board declared the Sheep Marine/CFMA site‑plan submission complete, agreed to bifurcate the pier permit from the site‑plan review for the proposed access road through the shoreland buffer, and scheduled a special hearing for July 29.
The Westport Island Planning Board took an initial procedural vote July 8 that will move a contested CFMA‑zoned application closer to substantive review. The board determined the applicant’s filing is complete and scheduled a special hearing to continue the matter.
Board members, staff and the applicant reviewed a multi-step history of work on the property — including earlier stump‑and‑fill approvals, tree‑removal permits, and a referral to planning board site‑plan review after CEO approvals. The chair told the board he planned to bifurcate the filings: treating the pier permit as a discrete application that the board could decide on now while taking additional time on the site‑plan review for a proposed access road that crosses the shoreland zone.
Applicant representatives said they had provided additional materials in response to the board’s questions; one applicant noted the board had the information for a month and asked that the board not allow a last‑minute request to slow the overall process. Board members expressed the need for more detailed site mapping, tree‑marking details and erosion controls for the roadway through the shoreline buffer.
After a short review and a brief break to let members examine the new materials, a motion to find the site‑plan application complete carried (the chair recorded “4 in favor,” with one member withholding a vote because she had raised concerns earlier). The board then voted to schedule a special public hearing limited to the application; the special hearing was set for July 29 with the intent to consider site‑plan items, pier permits and any related road permits at that meeting if notice requirements are met.
The chair emphasized that site‑plan review and shoreland permitting require different criteria and that any final decision on the proposed road through the shoreland buffer will require more complete information. Board members said they may hold site visits and study sessions, and the board asked the applicant to submit any remaining application pieces and to provide hard copies for members and the public.
The board’s procedural votes do not by themselves approve construction; they commit the board and the applicant to a public process with additional technical review and notice requirements. The special meeting will be publicized in local papers as required, and permitting steps after planning approval will involve the town CEO and additional permit signoffs.
