Peter Busque is a Windham developer who gambles big.

For 18 years, he’s run his own construction company, Busque Construction, with a focus on 100-plus house subdivisions in the Lakes Region.

Even as the real estate market lulls into a reputed “slowdown,” Busque continues to build the homes first and sell them later.

“It’s just fun playing the game, the whole real estate development thing,” Busque said. “It makes it fun to come to work in the morning.”

These ambitious projects have earned Busque an ill reputation from local residents who believe development in Windham has long gone unchecked.

Busque’s newest proposal, a 75-acre quarry on Nash Road and Route 302, has stirred a town-wide debate over whether neighbors of quarries and gravel pits are adequately protected from the adverse effects of these industrial operations.

Changes to Windham’s “mineral extraction” ordinance, submitted by a neighborhood group opposed to the quarry, will now be on the ballot in November.

These changes would enforce new restrictions on all new gravel and quarry operations in Windham. But existing gravel pit and quarry owners are worried that the ordinance changes could hurt business if they are forced to abide by the new regulations.

The neighborhood group, called the Windham Preservation Committee, says the ordinance was submitted to broaden the quarry debate from their own “backyards” and enforce new protections for all residents since quarries and gravel pits can built in all residential zones in Windham.

But Busque doesn’t believe it. He sees the new ordinance as just a masked attempt to shut down his quarry proposal, which is now in the hands of the Windham Town Council for final review.

“They couldn’t do anything at the Planning Board, nothing on the council level, so this was their last step,” Busque said.

The ordinance would in effect quash his quarry proposal by restricting where he can quarry.

The additional buffer restrictions of 1,000 feet in the new ordinance would leave him with one quarter the acreage to quarry and additional slope requirements would restrict how much ledge rock he could carve off the hilly terrain at the quarry site.

But the neighbors argue that these additional setbacks are appropriate and necessary given the quarry’s location.

“What’s lacking are reasonable setbacks,” said Carl Russell, whose kennel, Avante Garde Pet Care, abuts the proposed quarry. “We need reasonable setbacks and the traffic is also going to be problem.”

The location is particularly troubling to neighbors who believe blasting would put hazardous dust in the air, disrupt the quiet rural atmosphere with noise and vibration, and possibly damage nearby wells.

Many neighbors have already had their wells tested by Busque, a monitoring condition laid down by the town after its approval by the Windham Planning Board.

“We’re doing as much as we can to help the neighbors out,” Busque said. “But on a man’s land, he should be able do whatever he wants with it. That’s what we have ordinances for.”

From Busque’s point of view, the quarry is the perfect location because of its access to Route 302, the major arterial road through the Lakes Region.

If approved, Busque has an agreement with Auburn Concrete to allow a cement silo on the quarry site for mixing quarried rock, water and cement dust for concrete production.

Busque originally considered buying the property to build a residential subdivision, but after finding a predominance of ledge rock, Busque decided instead to pursue building a quarry.

This is typical procedure for Busque. Many of the gravel pits he’s operated over the years have later been reclaimed and turned into housing developments. And using rock material from the site of a housing development cuts down on the cost, he said.

Busque is no stranger to controversy. Neighbors fought to stop a gravel pit he now owns and operates on Route 35 in Standish two years ago. Recently, in Raymond, neighbors came out in force to oppose a proposal for a 120-house subdivision.

Leon Pride is one neighbor opposed to the quarry that see both sides of the issue, but thinks the quarry location is just “bad business.”

He doesn’t want to hinder any landowner’s right to quarry their land. He just wants to control large industrial operations that could affect many neighbors.

He hopes the neighborhood group will be able sit down and talk about the ordinance change with quarry and gravel pit owners who have grave concerns about how this ordinance would affect longstanding businesses.

The Windham Preservation Committee tried to talk with quarry and gravel pit owners prior to submitting their ordinance petition, but the two parties failed to reach an agreement and the neighbors handed in the petition anyway in fear of the quarry’s pending approval.

Even with the ordinance changes enacted, Pride said quarry and gravel pit owners could still negotiate a shorter buffer distance than those enforced by the new ordinance.

“We’re not here to hurt the town,” Pride said. “We’d like to have everyone working together on this.”

Busque argues however that the current ordinance, and state and federal laws he must abide by, are enough to protect residents.

“When we’re all done and running, they won’t even notice that we’re down there expect for the dump trucks,” Busque said.

Busque’s anxious to get started, but believes the final review process will be delayed until the November elections because the public outcry against the quarry.

The Windham Town Council in coming weeks will begin their final review of the quarry. The seven councilors will act as seven judges and, during a public hearing set for the middle of September, the council will hear both testimony for and against the quarry proposal to weigh their decision.

Meanwhile, both the neighbors and Busque will be trying to educate the public on their arguments for and against the ordinance change in the weeks leading up to the November ballot cast.

“If people get an honest reasonable look at this themselves, they will understand that this ordinance is something of interest to the whole town,” Russell said. “And we will begin to put a check on development in Windham, especially in terms of big industrial operations.”