SCARBOROUGH – Attracting a mix of retail and service-oriented businesses, improving recreational opportunities, increasing housing diversity and adding public transportation options are just some of the ways that Scarborough’s Dunstan village could be improved and revitalized.

That’s according to a new plan that the Scarborough Economic Development Corp., or SEDCO, will present to the Town Council at its meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 1, held after the Current’s deadline.

Karen Martin, executive director of SEDCO, said the Dunstan Neighborhood Revitalization Plan is not so much new, as it is a compilation of various other reports and studies integrated into one document designed to help the town bring private investment into “this unique and vital area” of Scarborough.

The revitalization plan for Dunstan incorporates concepts and strategies from the town’s own comprehensive plan, the Sustain Southern Maine Pilot Project and the Scarborough Vision report, Martin said.

She said the idea behind the revitalization plan was “not to lose sight of the important elements” in the various plans and studies already commissioned.

Martin called the plan for Dunstan both “an action plan” and a “road map” to redevelopment of key properties in the village, as well as for new development. The goal is to ensure that any projects are done in concert with the neighborhood’s vision for Dunstan, she added.

“Dunstan is ripe for development, with large parcels on the market and the economy beginning to pick up,” Martin said, which is why SEDCO felt it was important for it to focus its energies on the village, located at the southern end of Route 1 on the border with Saco.

The town is considering a contract zone proposal that would bring a new $32.5 million Maine Army National Guard readiness center and equipment maintenance facility to Dunstan within the next five years.

Overall, Martin said, the key to the revitalization plan SEDCO has created is communication and community building among developers and the neighborhood, including existing businesses, residents and civic organizations.

She said SEDCO would take a lead role, along with the town’s planning department, but the essential component will be the creation of some type of neighborhood organization to vet development proposals and make recommendations for further public projects.

Martin said the revitalization plan for Dunstan does not call for any zoning or ordinance changes, but it does involve the creation of a marketing plan for the village, the possible creation of a Dunstan-specific historic district, development of a “multipurpose recreational facility,” further review of traffic patterns to “disperse traffic from the core,” and increasing the number of bus stops, as well as pedestrian and bicycle access, among other goals.