Police Promotion

Paul Fenton, a detective with the Cape Elizabeth Police Department, has been promoted to sergeant effective in August. He steps into the position following the retirement of Andrew Steindl, who wrapped a 25-year career in law enforcement this past May.

“Five officers then began an intense promotional process, which included a written exam, interview board, background, and prior work history,” said Police Chief Neil Williams in an Aug. 9 announcement.

Fenton is a 1990 graduate of Cheverus High School and received a bachelor’s degree from Brandeis University in 1994. He is an emergency medical technician, a defensive tactics instructor and a member of the Special Reaction Team, Williams said. Fenton joined Cape Elizabeth PD as an officer in 1997 and was promoted to detective in 2000. He is married and has two children. Steindl’s retirement and Fenton’s promotion left another opening on the police department, filled July 29 by Darren Estes, a 21-year veteran of the Lisbon Police Department.

Building Bust

According to Cape Elizabeth Town Manager Michael McGovern, just three homes were built in town during the fiscal year that ended June 30. Although seven condo units were created, the dearth of new single-family homes is believed to be a record low. “We don’t think there’ve been that few homes built in town in at least 100 years,” said McGovern.

New digs

On Tuesday, the seating dais in the Town Council chamber was torn out as part of a $25,000 renovation project. Built 35 years ago by Pond Cove Millworks, the dais was scrapped and replaced with three-wheeled, folding tables wired with microphones and electrical outlets, in an attempt to bring council members down to the same level as the audience during their meetings. “It’s going be a little controversial,” said Town Manager Michael McGovern. “It will take some getting used to, but it will make our council meetings more open to dialogue, with a less authoritarian feel. It will make this room a lot more friendly and also free up space for a lot more meetings of all kinds.”

Building notice

The Cape Elizabeth Town Council has set Sept. 9 as the public hearing date on an ordinance change that would compel the town to notify certain abutters when their neighbors take out a building permit. The changes were prompted by a trio of lawsuit filed last fall by residents of Pilot Point Road, upset when a home renovation blocked their view of the ocean. Because appeals must be filed within 30 days of when a permit is issued, and because the abutters did not learn of the impending construction until after that time had passed, the Board of Appeals was forced to dismiss their complaints out of hand.

The proposed change would require notices be sent to any property owner within 50 feet of an affected property line, if someone files to build within 10 feet of a setback line, or within 125 feel of the normal high-water mark of the Atlantic Ocean. According to Town Manager Michael McGovern, the change would trigger the mailing of, on average, 70 notices per year, each requiring about 45 minutes of staff time to process, of about 52 hours per year.

Table for 100

The Good Table Restaurant, a popular eatery located on Route 77 in Cape Elizabeth, has filed a request with the town to increase its seating capacity from 75 to 100. “We have the parking on site already to accommodate this move,” wrote owners Lisa and Anthony Kastopoulos, in a letter to the town. “Since oftentimes between guests in seats and guests waiting on the porch for a table, we have 100 people here already, we don’t feel this will impact the town and its desire to remain quaint.”

Because the request would involve a zoning change the Good Table is in the Business District A zone, which limits restaurants to 80 seats the Town Council on Aug. 12 referred the request to the Planning Board for consideration.

Long-Term Planning

The Cape Elizabeth Town Council on Aug. 12 accepted a 15-page “Capital Stewardship Plan” for the next decade. The plan anticipates the town spending $21 million through 2024 on road repaving, drainage work and municipal building maintenance projects. The plan does not include needed work to school buildings and grounds. It anticipates budgeting $12.44 million in annual capital improvement budgets, taking about $650,000 in unspent money banked at the end of each fiscal year, and borrowing $7.9 million.

Given $6.7 million in outstanding debt due to be retired during the next 10 years, the plan anticipates an impact to the tax rate of 4.4 percent, absent any other budget increases, for annual tax hikes of between $329 and $540 on the median single-family home, assessed at $320,000. Councilor Frank Governali, who has taken the lead on capital planning, is slated to meet next week with school board Chairman John Christie to reconcile long-term capital needs on both sides of the ledger.

Master Meeting List

With holidays falling on the second Mondays in October and November, and known scheduling conflicts on the subsequent Wednesdays, to which postponed sessions are usually booted, the Cape Elizabeth Town Council has adopted a new set of meeting dates for the balance of the year. New dates are as follows:

• Thursday, Sept. 5 workshop,

• Monday, Sept. 9 regular meeting,

• Monday, Oct. 7 regular meeting,

• Wednesday, Oct. 16 workshop,

• Wednesday, Nov. 6 regular meeting (with leadership caucus),

• Wednesday, Nov. 13 workshop,

• Monday, Dec. 2 workshop,

• Monday, Dec. 9 regular meeting.

Cape Elizabeth Police Department Detective Paul Fenton, recently promoted to sergeant.