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Residents tell council the parking project would 'ruin' the character of Biddeford Pool
Summary
During public comment, multiple long‑time residents opposed the staff proposal, citing abundant existing parking, high cost, and threats to neighborhood character; several urged improved signage and low‑cost fixes instead of paving. One commenter called the project a "big waste of taxpayers dollars."
More than a dozen residents spoke during the workshop's public‑comment period, with many urging the council not to transform Lester B. Orcutt with extensive paving and new curbside parking. Longtime resident Mary Merkle said, "This is a big waste of taxpayers dollars," and other commenters called for preserving the street's canopy, avoiding changes that would alter the neighborhood character, and investing instead in schools or other town needs.
Speakers recommended lower‑cost alternatives: clearer signage identifying existing side‑street parking, selective removal of obstacles that obscure legal parking, and a parking‑shuttle or trolley during peak season rather than capital paving. Several residents acknowledged occasional summertime crowding but said it lasts only weeks and argued for pilot measures and better wayfinding rather than immediate construction. The council heard repeated requests for data on how often residents are actually denied parking and for a scheduled site walk so members can observe peak conditions.
