BIDDEFORD — A vote on a 19-lot subdivision on 8.3 acres — part of a land parcel adjacent to Clifford Park — is now scheduled for Sept. 21. The Biddeford Planning Board, citing the late arrival of information the public was not able to view prior to their Sept. 7 session, voted in favor of postponement at that time.

The prospect of the subdivision has sparked formation of a group called Stop West Brook. However, it also has supporters, who note Clifford Park will expand as a result. Clifford Park is located at 130 Pool St. and at 140 acres, encompasses tennis courts, a picnic area, a small skate park, a playground, and popular walking and hiking trails.

The development proposal has its roots in a three-way land exchange  between the city of Biddeford, and landowners E & R Development Corp., and Gervais Dube.

The City Council gave the nod authorizing the city manager to execute land conveyances with Mike Eon of E & R Development Corp, and with Dube in October 2020. The conveyance would give 4.2 acres of land currently in the park to Eon in exchange for 60 acres he owns. Dube offered to gift 42 acres in exchange for an appraisal, Recreation Director Carl Walsh told the City Council at the time. Walsh also noted it would give the city ownership of the waterfalls, a popular destination for the public, even though it is currently private property.

Biddeford Planning and Development Director Gregory Mitchell noted at the Sept. 7 Planning Board meeting the land matter is in the purvue of the City Council, and it is in the process of being finalized.

The board gave preliminary approval to the site plan and subdivision proposed by E & R Development Corp. in May.

City Planner Matthew Grooms in a report to the Planning Board, said the site of Winding Creek Lane extension, where the 19-lot subdivision would be located, “is a natural pinch point separating two large, contiguous areas of woodlands, and is situated proximate to wetlands of special significance.”

He said the applicant funded a study by Biodiversity Research Institute, a firm selected by the City of Biddeford, which reviewed potential impacts of residential development on wildlife and wildlife habitat in the vicinity of Clifford Park. The company assessed the 19-unit subdivision being reviewed by the Planning Board, along with two potential future residential areas.

The report recommended a cluster development to minimize habitat fragmentation; development of  buffers up to 300 feet from habitats utilized by wildlife species and consultation with Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. As a result of speaking with IF & W, the developers agreed to install a two-foot high “critter fence,” as it was termed, to prevent wildlife from migrating into the subdivision.

Among those speaking at the meeting was Biddeford Conservation Commission Chair Chrystina Gastelum.

She said the 4.2 acres the city would convey to the developers is critical wildlife habitat. The decision to enter into a letter of understanding on the land conveyance took place during the first year of the pandemic, when the council was meeting online, she noted.

“Clifford Park is pretty cool and supports a variety of wildlife,” said Gastelum, who added that development has the potential to detrimentally affect flora and fauna in Clifford Park, including Blandings Preserve.

“We think this project needs to be reconfigured,” Gastelum. She said there is a significant undeveloped area between Clifford Park and the Blandings Preserve traversed by turtles, reptiles, and other wildlife. “This development would significantly choke off that passage,” she said. “This effectively turns the I-95 of turtleville … into a ‘you can’t get there from here situation.'”

Mike Eon, one of the developers, said there were some misunderstandings as he pointed out what land he and Dube each already own and what the city currently owns.

“People wanted to make sure the wildlife was alright,” said Eon, and so he noted what he called the turtle fence. “We’re not splitting anything in half that I am aware of.”

He also noted the original 4.2 acres of  Clifford Park his company was to receive is now about 2.9 acres.

In a letter to the Planning Board, Biddeford resident Mark Robinson said he likes to bike, hike snowshoe and cross-country ski on conservation land that is open to the public.

“I would like to register my full support for the work that city officials have been doing to expand Clifford Park, to extend the Riverwalk, and to advance all associated efforts to improve the quality of life for Biddeford residents, especially those who live in the city proper, near the downtown,” he wrote. Robinson said a new entrance to Clifford Park on West Street would make other acreage and land protected by Kennebunkport Conservation Trust accessible.

Biddeford resident Samantha Wolf, a stewardship director for a Scarborough Land Trust, said she worries that the corridor as proposed is meant to sustain wildlife movement and recreation. “I think the recreation and wildlife element will clash and will create issues for wildlife,” she said.

There were several other speakers. One said there are more questions that need to be answered.

Planning Board member Sean Tarpey suggested holding off until the next meeting  because submissions had been made to the board late and that members of the public were not privy to them.

Planning Board Chair William Southwick said the information consisted of a couple of emails supporting the project and a document concerning the critter fence. He noted copies had been made for the board.

Board member Michael Cantara said board members saw the submissions that evening, but noted that the public had not seen them at all.

The vote to table a decision until Sept. 21 was 3-1, with associate member Susan Deschambault dissenting.

Southwick, the Planning Board chair, said any new submissions for the Sept. 21 meeting must be made by noon on Sept. 15.

Cantara moved that board agree to ask the city planner and economic director to draft a letter to the City Council, “indicating it is the board’s strong recommendation to the city that it include clear language establishing a conservation easement prohibiting development or sale of the 102 acres (the property the city would gain in the land conveyance) and that recreation use and wildlife protection be prioritized.” That vote was unanimous.

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