By Amanda Estes

Staff Writer

Safety topped a list of concerns voiced by seven Cape Elizabeth
residents during Tuesday’s planning board public hearing for the
proposed 46-unit condominium subdivision, Eastman Meadows.

Local developer Joel Fitzpatrick and his team will likely continue to
receive public input about the project via emails from residents to
planning board members and Town Planner Maureen O’Meara, as they
prepare revised plans for their next formal appearance in front of the
board in December. The meeting will also include a second public
hearing.

On Tuesday night, resident Mary Stephen said Eastman Road is a
“beautiful country road,” and one of the more scenic routes in town.
She said Eastman Road is a popular route for joggers, cyclists and
people out for a walk with their children.

“It’s not the safest road,” Stephen said. “There are a lot of twists and turns.”

 Living on a “bad curve” herself, Stephen said she is concerned
for the safety of her four children should the road experience an
increase in traffic.

David Plimpton, a Sawyer Road resident, suggested sidewalks be
installed to accommodate pedestrians and said despite some perceptions,
the neighborhood’s rural character does not make its streets less of a
safety concern.

“The whole idea of traffic calming is not working,” Plimpton said. “The
idea that a narrow road impairs speed is absolutely wrong.”

Along with traffic, Plimpton said the neighborhood is experiencing
“expanded growth”and feeling “discriminatory action by the town to
target our area for growth.”

“Now we have a Comprehensive Plan that actually focuses growth on our
area and I think that’s bad public policy,” he said, citing the
proponderence of wetlands as part of his reasoning.

If approved, Eastman Meadows would be the first of its kind in Cape
Elizabeth: a multiplex development marketed toward people 55 and older.
Fitzpatrick is proposing to build on a 40-acre site abutting existing
open space including Winnock Woods and Sprague Corporation land.

To address safety concerns shared by the public and some board members
– in particular, the line of sight from the proposed entrance to the
development, looking westward over an elevated curve – planning board
members, town staff and members of the development team will be
planning a site visit to verify sight distances.

Following a recommendation from the town’s traffic study, Fitzpatrick
and his team will also attend a planning board workshop, scheduled for
Nov. 6, regarding traffic calming measures. Planning Board Chairman
Barbara Schenkel said the study recommends Fitzpatrick put money in
escrow for the projects. Owens McCullough of Sebago Technics said
Fitzpatrick is “very concerned about costs” and asked for a price
estimate, however, the board did not have the information.

“All by itself, Eastman Road is a traffic calming measure,” said
Planning Board Member Paul Godfrey. “Development isn’t really going to
have an impact on the road. Maintaining the rural character of Eastman
Road is probably your best bet.”

 McCullough said Fitzpatrick has had several inquiries from
prospective homeowners. Depending on sales, he said the homes may be
built faster than one phase at a time. Fitzpatrick has projected a sale
price between the mid $300,000 to low $400,000 range for the units.

The 46 single-story, two bedroom condos and an existing farmhouse will
be served by public water and sewer. Fitzpatrick will be responsible
for building a pump station within the development, extending the water
main and extending the sewer line roughly 2,000 feet along Eastman
Road. The town will reimburse Fitzpatrick to stub out service to
existing homes to provide future opportunities to connect to public
sewer.

McCullough  said the site’s storm water will be collected and
piped to five filtration areas before it is discharged, a process that
is in compliance with current storm water laws.

Richard Carlson, whose 26-acre horse farm abuts roughly 1,600 feet on
the opposite side of Eastman Road, said he was worried about another
environmental issue: wetlands. Carlson said prior to Fitzpatrick’s
purchase of the land, a wetland had been identified near the rear
corner of the site.

“This area has now totally been altered,” Carlson said. “To my
knowledge, there has not been a permit granted to alter this area.”

After some residents raised the issue of filling in wetlands at the
Sept. 29 site walk, McCullough said representatives from the U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers and the Maine Department of Environmental Protection
(DEP) walked the site and found there were no streams on the property,
however, they determined the area in question – an old agricultural
field – should be considered a wetland. McCullough said the wetland
would be reflected on the revised plans.

He also said Fitzpatrick was issued a letter of no violation from the
DEP following a neighbor’s complaint he was stripping and filling the
area in February. The DEP representative determined the work on site
had been confined to test pits for ledge and soil conditions,
McCullough said.

Not all who spoke during the meeting were opposed to the condos.
Mitchell Road resident Barbara Wendell said she may be interested in
purchasing one of the units.

“I can’t stay in this town with the property taxes being what they are,
having my home and facing retirement,” she said. “I know there’s quite
a few others like myself, who want to stay in Cape Elizabeth.”

Schenkel said while she has heard Fitzpatrick’s reasons for not deed
restricting the condos to people 55 and older, she said by doing so, he
may attract more people who don’t want to live around children.

“That would certainly mitigate the stress on our tax system,” she said.

Planning Board Member Jack Kennealy agreed with Schenkel about deed restrictions.  

“Phase 1 is going to start at $350,000,” he said. “I don’t think
there’s any way that’s going to be unattractive to young families.”

McCullough said while not marketed toward the demographics, the
development could attract the occasional family or young professionals.


Some residents said they didn’t think the proposed uniform units were
attractive in design. Amory Houghton, who lives on Spurwink Avenue,
called the units “stale” and “sterile.”

“I wouldn’t want to live there,” he said.

Schenkel also encouraged Fitzpatrick to reconsider the exterior of the units and “dress them up.”