Government Spotlight

Fairgrounds bathroom project previewed at Planning Board

Concept sketch of Fairgrounds bathroom and pavillion | from the meeting agenda packet

| Joanne Cole |

The Planning Board got a first look on Tuesday of what the bathroom and storage facility for the Fairgrounds might look like.  They also had a preliminary conversation about additional lots proposed for the Oz Drive subdivision off Sabbathday Road.

Fairgrounds bathrooms/storage project. Parks & Recreation Director Sarah Rodriguez attended the September 3 meeting to give the Planning Board an update and give the board an opportunity to share any concerns about the Fairgrounds bathroom project.

Rodriguez told the board that a 20’ x 40’ bathroom and storage area and 6-foot breezeway will be an addition to the existing pavilion building, not a freestanding structure originally envisioned.  “We switched to one continuous building instead of having two,” she said. Sketches show water fountains and four toilets.

The facility will have an underground septic system set back at an appropriate distance from the Water District and the Resource Protection Zone boundary, Rodriguez said. The parcel is in the Farm and Forest District and the Groundwater Overlay and Resource Protection Districts.  

Board members had few questions and expressed appreciation for the materials and information from Rodriguez. As to whether formal site plan review is required, they urged Rodriguez to check with departing Planner Kathy Tombarelli and/or Code Enforcement Officer Rick Haas. “I think you’re ready if you need that review,” said Chair Doug McAtee.

The pavilion and playground on a quiet afternoon

Further subdivision for Oz Drive subdivision.  Oz Drive Associates, LLC, wants to amend its approved subdivision plan to develop an additional six lots on two parcels totaling some 15.6 acres off Oz Drive, which is on Sabbathday Road across from the former Buddy’s Store.

The parcels to be developed are in the Residential C District and Groundwater Protection Overlay District (Map 2 Lots 36-3 and 36-4) and together border Oz Drive, Sabbathday Road and Mayall Road.

Oz Drive project location | from the meeting agenda packet

Brandon Binette of Sevee & Maher Engineers spoke on behalf of Oz Drive Associates for a pre-application session to share information with the board and address–and possibly head off–any concerns.  

Binette explained that five of the six new lots would be for commercial uses, joining two already on site. The to-be-upgraded-and-widened Oz Drive entrance on Sabbathday Road would provide access. The sixth lot would be residential-only with an entrance around the corner on Mayall Road. 

Oz Associates would retain ownership and ‘build to suit’ the needs and activities of the prospective commercial tenants, Binette said.

That approach raised questions.  Would Oz Drive Associates have to return to the Planning Board for approval “for every single new tenant that arrives,” as Binette put it.  Or could the new commercial lots in effect receive pre-clearance, as long as the eventual tenants’ proposed uses are similar to the current one?  It’s described in Oz Drive Associates’ documents as “commercial business production of goods.” 

Member Steve Libby was concerned that blanket approval would deprive abutters of the opportunity to weigh in on specific uses. (Typical concerns tend to involve noise, visual screening and traffic, safety and environmental impacts.)

In addition, Libby noted that the eventual structures—now unknown—will affect the amount of impervious surface on the lots. New Gloucester’s zoning ordinance limits impervious cover—paving, parking, roofs and such– to 30 percent of the lot area in the RC zone.

Binette and board members appeared to agree that if a tenant proposes a different use from what’s currently under way in the Oz Drive subdivision, that would require board approval.  Allowed uses in the RC zone include retail, self-storage, auto repair and many other commercial activities, but they require site plan review at the board.  But whether adding uses similar to those already taking place in a previously-approved subdivision also requires board review or the simpler approval of the code enforcement officer, the board will look into.    

Meanwhile, septic plans, road entrance details and more are on Oz Drive Associates’ to-do list for its formal application. “You’ve done a nice job on everything that we have so far here,” Chair Doug McAtee told Binette.  And there’s more ahead.

Existing commercial facilities on Oz Drive, as seen from Sabbathday Road

View the September 3, 2024, Planning Board meeting at this link. Find links to meeting agendas, minutes and related documents on the Planning Board page at this link.