The Brunswick Town Council next month will hold a public hearing on a plan to pause fast-tracked development projects.
The Planning Board unanimously recommended the council enact a 180-day moratorium on a streamlined review process that allows developers of large-scale projects to obtain approval in as little as 21 days, instead of the usual 35 days. Board members said the mechanism, instituted in 2017 as a developer-friendly policy, has been rarely used until December. Since then, seven such projects have been approved, overwhelming staff and increasing the possibility regulations are being overlooked, according to planning officials.
The council on Tuesday unanimously voted to hold a public hearing on the recommendation at its next meeting March 4 before making a decision.
The streamlined process allows developers to get projects approved in one Planning Board meeting instead of two.
“There are concerns about the streamlined process because (the Planning Board) only gets one bite at the apple,” Planning Board Chairperson Bill Dana told the council Tuesday.
Jacob Sesker, interim director of planning and development, cited several reasons for the influx of fast-tracked development proposals in Brunswick, including an extended housing development moratorium in town, development restrictions in other communities and uncertainty about the economy.
Jeff Emerson, the town’s deputy fire chief who serves on the Staff Review Committee that initially reviews major development projects, wrote in a memo to the Planning Board that the fast-track option can invite problems. He claimed he was recently misquoted about sprinkler requirements by the developer of the Wilbur’s Woods housing/apartment project that the Planning Board approved under the fast-track process during a meeting last month.
Chris Marshall, the developer behind Wilbur’s Woods, said the sprinkler issue was a misunderstanding, as the project includes an apartment building that requires sprinklers and houses that don’t.
Marshall said the streamlined review process is an attractive option for developers.
“It makes the project more predictable,” he said. “Being predictable decreases risk, decreases costs.”
Resident Shaun Hogan said developers shouldn’t have the option for fast-tracked approval.
“It should take as long as it takes for the Planning Board to do a thorough job and to inform all the abutters of the surrounding properties and not put our staff under the added stress of getting it done quickly,” he said. “We shouldn’t prioritize speed. We should prioritize accuracy.”
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