By Amanda Estes

Staff Writer

    In an effort to prevent another controversy, similar
to the one that surrounded last year’s Sawyer Marsh development, the
city council is considering amendments to the city’s zoning ordinance
that would extend the Resource Protection (RP) zoning district and
terminate the special exceptions that currently allow for construction
on the margins of 100-year flood plains.

    The property in Sawyer Marsh was preserved through a
land swap between the city and developers Paul Vose and Larry Lydon.
Vose and Lydon were given a city owned lot across the street from 689
Sawyer Street, which was the property they had been given approval to
develop. The development was initially given approval because it
is  upland beyond the boundary line of the 100-year flood plain.
The Sawyer Marsh was determined by a city study to be one of the most
valuable open spaces in the city.

    “The potential for another Sawyer Street controversy
is still there today and potentially we would have to allow some
development,” said Tex Haeuser, South Portland’s Planning and
Development Director, at Monday’s council workshop. He said Councilor
Jim Soule asked him to prepare amendments to the zoning ordinance as a
method for providing some protection right away for the city’s streams
and flood plains. Haeuser developed the amendments in cooperation with
City Manager Ted Jankowski, Code Enforcement Officer Patricia Doucette,
Community Planner Steve Puleo, and Councilor Soule. 

    Part of the proposed zoning amendments is to extend
the RP zone by 25 feet. The RP zones are comprised of four streams,
their tributaries and their respective 100-year flood plains. Puleo
defined a 100-year flood plain as an area that is likely to be flooded
once every 100 years. The RP zoning district currently includes
Anthoine Creek, Barberry Creek, Mill Creek including Kimball Brook and
Trout Brook, and Long Creek, which includes Clark’s Pond, Jackson
Brook, Red Brook and their tributaries. Soule said the group debated
over the size of the buffer and considered extensions of 100 or 50
feet, but determined that those extensions would be taking too many
rights away. Puleo said 25 feet is a typical wetland buffer.

    The second amendment would remove the special
exceptions in the ordinance that currently allow for the development of
homes and related structures in the RP district.

    “Now in the RP zone, people are allowed to build a
home as long as the home is elevated and includes design features that
allow the water to pass through,” Haeuser said. He said under current
code regulations in chapters 5 and 27 of the city’s respective building
and zoning ordinance, the Planning Board can approve the construction
of homes in flood plains. Under the proposed amendment, only additions
or alterations to existing structures would be permitted and properties
with pending approval or recent approval, meaning from 2000 to the
present, would be allowed to continue. The ordinance would be
retroactively dated to March 7, which is the date it became public
knowledge. 

    Exceptions to the ordinance that would not be
affected by the amendment are public educational facilities, public
utility structures, water-related uses such as boat ramps, and
agricultural uses. The ordinance also currently allows for recreational
uses such as golf courses, but Haeuser said he would discuss removing
that exception with the Planning Board in response to concerns from
Councilor Linda Boudreau. Boudreau also questioned why agricultural
uses would still be permitted, since “not everyone is an organic
farmer.”

    Mayor Claude Morgan said he thinks the city could
address the farming issue by only permitting organic farmers to use the
land.

    Within the RP zoning district, there are 12 lots
that could potentially be impacted by changes to the boundaries and
permitted uses of the zones. In the Anthoine Creek area, one of two
properties would be slightly impacted by the 25-foot extension and on
the other property several condominium units already exist. In the
Barberry Creek area one property would be impacted, but there would
still be land available outside of the zone for development. The Mill
Creek area contains the majority of the affected parcels with 10 lots
that are available for development under the current RP zoning, but may
not necessarily be available under the Department of Environmental
Protection (DEP) regulations. Haeuser said the Long Creek area has the
benefit of an existing 100-foot setback from the stream channel so
there do not appear to be any areas where new boundaries would prevent
development. Doucette said that a second look at the lots might
determine that the land is not developable anyway due to other
stipulations.

    The amendments were referred to the Planning Board
for consideration and a public hearing and will most likely be the
subject of another city council workshop. The council will want to hear
from owners of the potentially impacted parcels and learn more about
the current status of the properties in question.