The Gorham Planning Board issued final approval Monday night for the first two phases of the Gorham Fairways South housing project on McLellan Road after preliminarily approving the project in November.
Nick Troiano, of Troiano Properties, said site construction will begin in the fall. Phase one will include 75 single-family lots arranged along the southern and eastern side of the development, plus 150 parking spaces. Phase two will consist of six three-story, 12-unit condominium buildings with 245 parking spaces. A loop road connecting to McLellan Road will be constructed along the properties within the site.
The two phases are the first steps in a five-phase project, which will culminate in 75 single-family homes and 440 multifamily units. The overall plan, to be completed over multiple years on the 100.5-acre site at the former golf course, calls for 1,013 units. There will be 51 acres of open space, including about 24 conserved acres along the Stroudwater River.
Planning board members raised concerns about the effects of the project on McLellan Road traffic. McLellan Road links South Street (Route 114) with Brackett Road, that runs between Saco Street and the roundabout on New Portland Road.
The Maine Department of Transportation is working on a Portland-West study to relieve traffic congestion in the region to be completed by the spring of 2027. Troiano pointed out that the traffic improvements by MDOT will likely be implemented before phases 1 and 2 are fully functioning and occupied in about three years, meaning the development will not impact traffic before that time.
“We’re underutilizing what the existing golf course had if it had still been open,” Troiano said.
“The planning board spent an enormous amount of time on this issue recognizing that this project can and may likely make traffic temporarily worse, but it is hopefully leading to a long-term solution through the DOT studies on the future phases,” planning board member David Walsh said.
No members of the public spoke at the meeting. The final approval for the first two phases passed, 7-0.
Comments are not available on this story. Read more about why we allow commenting on some stories and not on others.
We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. At its best, our comments sections can be a productive platform for readers to engage with our journalism, offer thoughts on coverage and issues, and drive conversation in a respectful, solutions-based way. It's a form of open discourse that can be useful to our community, public officials, journalists and others.
We do not enable comments on everything — exceptions include most crime stories, and coverage involving personal tragedy or sensitive issues that invite personal attacks instead of thoughtful discussion.
You can read more here about our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is also found on our FAQs.
Show less