Staff Writer

The Scarborough Planning Board hosted a public hearing Monday for amendments to be made to the zoning ordinance and zoning map to establish a village residential 4 (VR4) district along Gorham and Sawyer Roads, north of the municipal and school complex.

The 100 to 150-acre district, beginning near Track View Terrace off Sawyer Road, and ending near Ridgeway Road off Gorham Road, will go to public hearing at the Feb.18 town council meeting, with a second reading by the council in March.

During the meeting, Town Planner Dan Bacon gave a Power Point presentation of the proposed district area, created by the town’s Comprehensive Plan Implementation Committee (CPIC). Under the proposal, the district would have a medium density residential area, meaning there would be no more than four houses per residential acre. 

The proposal would allow a range of housing types, including single-family, two-family, multiplex and townhouse homes, although the size of parcels of land would differ with the size of the home, such as 5,000 square feet for a single-family home, 7,500 square feet for two-family homes, and 15,000 square feet for multiplex and townhouse homes. Under the proposal, non-residential buildings would also be allowed, with a 15,000 square feet lot area.

According to the proposal, multiplexes and townhouses would be required to rest on five acres of land.

Permitted uses for the district would include a place of worship, school, library, museum, home daycare, residential recreation facility, municipal buildings and a golf course. 

Special exceptions for permitted use are nursing homes, orphanages, hospices, charitable institutions, public utility facilities, home occupations, group daycare and nursery schools.

Sidewalks and trees would be provided on each side of the street, according to proposed amendments.

During the presentation, Bacon said after CPIC proposed the initial amendments to the zoning ordinance and zoning map, he received feedback from two neighborhood meetings in November and December. Bacon said public feedback for the district included concern for the significant amount of wetlands in the area, speeding and increased traffic due to development.

After the neighborhood meetings, CPIC made changes to the proposal, including reducing the size of the district to exclude wetlands, so they may be protected. The proposal states that any wetland in the district more than 15,000 square feet in size will not be developed. The proposal includes low-volume streets designed for low speeds.

While there was no public comment at the hearing, Scarborough resident Patricia Schild sent an email to the planning board indicating she is concerned about traffic safety around Sawyer Road and Gorham Road if the area is full of houses.

Planning board members were in agreement to recommend the proposals to the town council, however, planning board member John Chamberlain said he did not understand why the district was not decided to be a village residential 2 area (VR2), which means there are no more than two houses per acre, because of the possibility of density bonuses, agreements with developers about including a certain number of affordable housing units per acre of homes. Planning board member Charles Callahan said he did not think there were many five-acre lots available for townhouses or multiplexes on the Sawyer Road.

Planning Board Chairman Allen Paul said he understands concerns of planning board members, but said the proposal was based on the opinion of members of the community. He said the area will not be highly dense to “make sure it’s not uncontrollable.”