The Town of Scarborough has several citizen-led boards and committees working on issues to enhance our community. See what some of the active boards and committees have been up to in the past few months. Find the full details on the Town of Scarborough website, shared in our latest Board & Committee Newsletter.
Some of updates include:
Planning Board — The Planning Board has reviewed several notable projects in the past few months. At its Feb. 20 meeting, the Board approved the site plan application of Portland Rugby Club for two athletic fields, a clubhouse, and network of walkways connecting the fields at 122 Two Rod Road. Additionally, InterMed submitted a sketch plan proposing a surgery center, urgent care, and office building in the Downs Town Center subdivision. The Board will be reviewing this at its March 18 meeting (meeting recordings are available to view on the Scarborough Maine Public
Meetings YouTube channel).
Long Range Planning Committee — The LRPC has continued its work to implement the Comprehensive Plan that was approved by the Town in 2021. As part of this work, the LRPC is simplifying and clarifying existing ordinances, including combining standards from the Site Plan Review Ordinance and Design Standards for its Commercial Districts. The current standards under review pertain to architectural requirements, building materials, placement of buildings on a site, and pedestrian amenities for new and redevelopment projects. The Committee anticipates work continuing on this through the spring. The next topic for review is the existing parking standards.
Coastal Waters and Harbor Advisory Committee — Coastal Waters has focused their efforts around parking in the Pine Point area. They recently completed an extensive parking analysis and sent recommendations to the Town Council for a more in-depth look at parking solutions due to the pressure on the Pine Point Co-op. The committee is trying to alleviate some parking issues at the co-op by making improvements to the commercial fishing lot and putting up additional signage. Also at the co-op, new cranes for commercial fishers have been installed and are up and running since the end of February.
Sustainability Committee — The Sustainability Committee is advocating for the adoption a Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) ordinance, which makes financing for energy efficiency projects available to commercial property owners. The Ordinance Committee will consider this ordinance in March. The committee is also finding ways to support sustainability projects in Scarborough. They requested a reserve account for this purpose, recommending that a portion of revenues from electrical permit fees and in-lieu fees collected from the Town’s electric vehicle charging ordinance be directed to the account. It will be reviewed by the Finance Committee.
Conservation Commission — The Conservation Commission is working with the Planning Department to protect
Scarborough’s water resources. They want to develop requirements for natural vegetation buffers and increased setbacks. They also finalized their recommendations for new Environmental Standards, which would be added to Chapter 405B Site Plan Standards if approved. The next step is for the Ordinance Committee to review and offer feedback. Looking ahead, the commission is supporting the Open Space Plan process that is currently underway. The plan was approved in the FY2024 budget to identify locations to create opportunities for small and large open space areas that could be used for passive park space, trail connections or other conservation.
Parks and Conservation Land Board — The PCLB plays a key role in the Town Council’s goal to increase land conservation through their 30×30 initiative (conserving 30% of Scarborough land by 2030). They have written a letter to the Town Council in support of adding a Land Bond request in the upcoming FY2025 budget, which would potentially mean a referendum on the 2024 ballot to renew the land bond (bond that funds conserving land in Scarborough).
Ad Hoc Community Center Advisory Committee — The advisory committee has partnered with their consultant UTILE to narrow down building, operational costs, and revenue potential for a future community center. They are currently evaluating municipally owned properties for site fitting so they can get a sense of construction costs. Committee meetings are open to the public and welcome input (find their page within the Board & Committees section of the website). They plan to host an open house this spring.
To learn more, read the full Board & Committee Newsletter on the Town of Scarborough website. All meeting minutes and agendas can be accessed from the Boards & Committees page under the “Government” menu. This page also has a list of committee vacancies and an online application. Subscribe to the Town Newsletter for regular updates on what’s happening in Scarborough.
Copy the Story LinkComments are not available on this story.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
