Greenville Planning Board continues work on multiple ordinances

GREENVILLE — The Greenville Planning Board has been busy working on several ordinances to get these ready for a vote at the annual town meeting on Monday, June 3. The board’s work continued during a meeting on March 20.

Board Chairperson John Contreni said at the meeting two weeks prior the board agreed by consensus to reduce the minimum lot size for a dwelling from 10,000 to 7,500 square feet. He said he failed then to call for a vote, which instead was made and passed on March 20.

Decreasing the minimum lot size to 7,500 square feet from 10,000 will enable the town to increase the density of homes on properties which will help with the density compliance requirements of LD 2003, “An Act To Implement the Recommendations of the Commission To Increase Housing Opportunities in Maine by Studying Zoning and Land Use Restrictions” signed by Gov. Janet Mills in April 2022.

Per guidance on the act from the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development, the law is designed to remove unnecessary regulatory barriers to housing production in Maine, while preserving local ability to create land use plans and protect sensitive environmental resources. Greenville has until July 1 to implement LD 2003.

The act guidance has sections relevant to municipalities, identifying amended sections of state law. Amendments include allowing for additional density for affordable housing developments in certain areas; generally requiring that municipalities allow between two and four housing units per lot where housing is permitted; requiring that municipalities allow accessory dwelling units to be located on the same lot as a single-family home under certain conditions; and requiring that the state establish statewide and regional housing production goals and set forth ways in which local governments can coordinate with that goal.

The planning board is also working on a fence ordinance for Greenville, in response to resident requests to help avoid potential conflicts between neighbors concerning fence issues. Also, the state’s mandate to increase housing density in Maine cities and towns will likely focus local attention on fences.

Contreni presented existing fence ordinances from communities such as Bar Harbor, Bath, Kittery, and Lewiston for his fellow board members to look at and see if anything from these documents should be incorporated into Greenville’s.

At the March 6 meeting, planning board members reviewed a preliminary draft of an ordinance and marked it up for further discussion and drafting. The first version is  built on the state of Maine ordinance statutes regarding fences.

At the Dec. 6 special town meeting, residents approved the creation of a multigenerational housing district on Spruce Street. The purpose of the new district is to permit developers to build from 22 to 28 housing units on the 5.5-acre property.

The planning board, which presented the ordinance, sees increased housing density as a tool to create more housing units in the town at lower cost and, thus, be more accessible to future long-term renters and homeowners. The board believes that more new housing that is affordable will attract additional residents to town adding to Greenville’s workforce and overall economic well-being.

Code Enforcement Officer Ron Sarol said there may be a need for language to address setbacks, such as for someone wanting to build a duplex. “Something that says setback variances can be granted if buildings share a common wall,” he said.

LD 2003 allows for additional density for affordable housing developments as well as the addition of between two and four dwelling units per lot where residential uses are permitted. The law also allows “accessory dwelling units” on the same lot as a single-family home, and these are all being included in the forthcoming ordinance proposals.

“We certainly intend to share it with the community before we go to the town meeting,” Contreni said.

“We still have two alternate positions that are vacant so I would encourage anyone who hears of this meeting to apply for those two vacant positions,” he said, about the planning board positions.

Those interested can apply on the town website at https://greenvilleme.com/boards/planning-board.