[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":56,"_74":56},"mediaId",6213158,"mediaKeyId","3680307-e7edd4cdffb103f966bf1d5d00c39893","parentId",3680307,"title","Board continues 800 Portland Road 49‑unit condominium review to June 17","audioSeconds",119,"startMs",5585000,"endMs",5704000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3680307-e7edd4cdffb103f966bf1d5d00c39893&start=5585&end=5704","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3680307-e7edd4cdffb103f966bf1d5d00c39893/thumbnail_5585000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6213158/Maine/Board-continues-800-Portland-Road-49unit-condominium-review-to-June-17","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6213158-ed34455d404a4c0b4bc14c48a7b2f9b4/orig.mp4?Expires=1771153128&Signature=hwE31DQnqzKIWPo7EkVAN2yHtqZM3ZJwT0LAQ7VBqXhJHUYh3LxDdzJPHHGeLBNiV5-0ZLyVusllTMltrnEejOTT2tbnmNxrSy-nrifAc3huIVPpUK3bJduwrf6nib8Uzj407XezydT0Pc7VOXF9ULH-PwT1DjV4yDiI6gB-j-N7FtI6Amz8oviVRNSWbXV899SQY02vqwGkrNhaEkg2JYrqBZoQwg~5AieavCMukyOVmZltHxIoXvos0tti4L4g61cBXmmRPrIJ7xdkoRALIj33vIk~0uC~s68a~TOgBTCzyCez92bRqmEAh3BjfsjMcY1rEptT7pAIurTVExUNQw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","","date","2025-06-04T12:44:18Z","article","The Saco Planning Board on Tuesday continued a public hearing for a proposal at 800 Portland Road for a 49‑unit residential condominium building with about 3,000 square feet of commercial space so the applicant could coordinate outstanding agency comments.

City Planner Emily Cole Prescott told the board the applicant asked for additional time to address review comments and that staff expects a narrower set of findings and conditions by the next meeting. Planning Board member Jim Moyer moved to continue the review to June 17; the motion, seconded by Jeff Brusciau, passed 5-0.

No substantive testimony on the project was heard at the meeting because the applicant requested the continuance; the board will review updated materials and any agency memos at the June 17 meeting.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Saco Planning Board Meeting - June 3, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","The Planning Board continued review of a proposal for a 49‑unit residential condominium with commercial space at 800 Portland Road; the applicant asked for more time to coordinate agency comments and will return June 17.","taxTitle","Planning Board , Saco City, York County, Maine","taxId",69266,"location","Maine","headline","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":56,"_74":56},6213163,"Planning board finds 3‑lot Smutty Lane subdivision application complete but schedules site walk and further engineering review",2514,2890000,5404000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3680307-e7edd4cdffb103f966bf1d5d00c39893&start=2890&end=5404","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3680307-e7edd4cdffb103f966bf1d5d00c39893/thumbnail_2890000.jpg","/articles/6213163/Maine/Planning-board-finds-3lot-Smutty-Lane-subdivision-application-complete-but-schedules-site-walk-and-further-engineering-review","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6213163-1ac5055772358049f79d82b37e5a01b0/orig.mp4?Expires=1771153128&Signature=L~Au3NERoGX28SnUa31IQs1Rg40sDa57UDDgJvF8vzYlWF0qwd9dZPoxRrBHa-HR8edNKEIt8homQwfRrlRZA7ToGTowCXmuVCUilWKgNflqnoHJAjNjj8FpxaEVfrGFL-ndRAe5wEdNimcnkOTu6ul2TTp~RtGsdCibvF8ncfJx~3z-Tg7X6uzQxK7n~TiG2-HBztTHC7hHFlq7jq4h9EGokNEHatjUN38NN6ltrYtpBubDixh5aFA8NIlPO5zZYXiq7LiE2BVXv6-GKBXuRO0VUO2-EmsEJ9mlBa1Ahi4OP8HNSlX~y2IE~ANpb728AWCNTShuDQ6I3n0~p5DcdA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Saco Planning Board on Tuesday voted to find complete a three-lot subdivision application for 56 Smutty Lane but required additional field review, deed restrictions to preserve a stream buffer, and further engineering checks on stormwater and groundwater issues.

Applicant Craig Burgess of Acorn Engineering and the owner represented by Jason, for Big Ledge LLC, presented a compact three-lot plan in the Rural Conservation zoning district that uses existing frontage on Smutty Lane. Burgess said the developer will preserve a minimum 100-foot buffer along an unnamed stream on the site and submitted a stormwater report intended to show development will not increase peak runoff at the study point.

City Planner Emily Cole Prescott noted the application packet included a wetland peer review and an \"ability to serve\" water-email in the after-the-fact materials and described the short timeline for placing the item on the agenda. The applicant reported a small, previously unmapped wetland pocket near Smutty Lane roughly “3, 400 square feet” and said it will be delineated and added to the plans.

Board members raised multiple technical concerns. Member Jeff Brusciau reviewed the submitted disturbance and impervious-area figures and said the applicant’s totals appeared to exceed thresholds that trigger broader state stormwater review: the application listed 7,855 square feet of impervious area and 38,427 square feet (0.88 acres) of disturbed area; Brusciau said adding those figures yielded more than one acre of activity and asked staff and the city engineer to confirm the calculations and regulatory thresholds.

Burgess responded that the applicant would avoid city-level water-quality triggers by capping impervious area at 3,300 square feet per lot so the project stays under Saco’s 10,000-square-foot water-quality threshold for the overall project. He also said the applicant will preserve a 100-foot wooded buffer along the stream, install silt fence erosion controls during construction, and investigate whether a Maine DEP permit-by-rule might apply for any larger disturbance.

Members also asked about high groundwater observed in test pits—Brusciau said limiting factor depths of about 16–18 inches were reported—and requested deed language to protect preserved buffer areas once lots are sold. Horizons Surveying confirmed boundary pins are set for the parcels; a waiver for granite monuments was discussed but the board noted municipal code chapter 188-807 suggests pins may be adequate in many subdivision situations.

The board voted 4-0 with one abstention (Brusciau abstained on completeness) to find the application complete. The board set a site walk for Monday, June 23 at 8:00 a.m. to inspect existing conditions and scheduled a public hearing for July 1. Members asked staff and the city engineer to review the stormwater calculations, verify site distances and survey work, and confirm whether deed restrictions or other conditions should be recorded prior to lot sales.

No final subdivision approval was granted; the completeness determination starts formal peer and city engineering review rather than approving construction.","The board found the 56 Smutty Lane three-lot subdivision application complete (4-0 with one abstention) but required a site walk, deed restrictions for buffer preservation, and further engineering review of stormwater and groundwater concerns before public hearing July 1.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":56,"_74":56},6213168,"Planning board continues review of 439 Main Street condo conversion after questions over long-term affordable controls",1818,711000,2529000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3680307-e7edd4cdffb103f966bf1d5d00c39893&start=711&end=2529","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3680307-e7edd4cdffb103f966bf1d5d00c39893/thumbnail_711000.jpg","/articles/6213168/Maine/Planning-board-continues-review-of-439-Main-Street-condo-conversion-after-questions-over-long-term-affordable-controls","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6213168-43690d43b0b1caa86df745592d861967/orig.mp4?Expires=1771153128&Signature=mqvSrp55u0YXPle3Ki98KYU4pl6dCglku8eSIOYam9RVU0XbADJDnRMCuezqQrHC1AnqQcYF5ykIOZebcoDMXTM0lZtfR7NraQurVKJz3usNl1gx8mUuo8Yh4iW2zgkDlQxJKmXvFsmqVE-Df25U9eOuNevfxYNiQo9R00~tAncLSKNkobPiRj2L8h1MMzz0AVDLHt0DHYwqMQQiXpJuhHmkvHGSBUpXoVajkl3K9HolOo9~5OXXRU9HnrC92CvF9K28V5EzVU66ldzmKXZ4gTFtmBv9QMuJoiEf-5rqxs0PaP9fCPSTvKGiZUjoyJoR1Dj4SLg2wT79x48ivrE8eg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Saco Planning Board on Tuesday continued the public hearing for a proposal to convert existing commercial space at 439 Main Street into seven residential condominium units with four affordable units, citing unresolved questions about ownership structure and enforceability of a 30-year affordability restriction.

The matter is significant because the board and staff want a clear enforcement mechanism recorded on title to ensure the affordable units remain so over time. City Planner Emily Cole Prescott recommended that the proposed use restriction be filed on the registry of deeds to alert future buyers and to support annual monitoring by planning staff.

Applicant representative Austin Fagan of BH2M said, “This is a 7 unit, residential condo conversion with 4 affordable units.” He told the board the current plan is for one entity to hold all seven condominium units and rent them, though the applicant did not rule out future individual sales. “The applicant is intending to retain these units,” Fagan said, adding that if sold the affordable covenant could be attached to individual deeds and the applicant intends yearly reporting to the planning office.

Board members pressed for clarity on whether the units would be permanently held by a single owner and managed as rentals or sold as individual condos with deed restrictions. Member Jeff Brusciau asked how the town could ensure affordable status if a unit is sold to a qualified buyer who later no longer meets income limits; Emily Cole Prescott answered, “It's usually most programs are at the time of sale, so you can't — you don't get kicked out of your house for something that you bought. However, if you sell the house before the 30 year restriction is up, you still have to sell it to a qualified buyer who meets the affordable restriction at that time.”

The application packet includes updated turning templates and a relocated dumpster; the applicant said there are 30 parking spaces for seven units and that the plan will include ADA-marked and a van-accessible space. Neighbors requested a six-foot fence; the applicant said existing tree cover and a roughly 35-foot green buffer between the parking area and the abutter’s garage should provide screening and the applicant did not intend to build the fence.

Planning staff and the board discussed conditions that would be placed on any approval: specifying which units (presently shown as Units 1A, 1B, 2A and 2B) are designated affordable; recording a use restriction in the registry of deeds; requiring annual reporting if a single owner retains and rents the affordable units; and requiring condo documents and updated affordability plans if the applicant seeks authority to sell units individually.

The board voted 5-0 to continue the public hearing to June 17, 2025, to give staff and the applicant time to produce clarified condo or rental documentation, draft findings and conditions for review, and details about parking, striping and unit designation. No final approval or binding decision was made at the meeting.

The board asked staff to provide draft findings and conditions for the next meeting and to confirm outstanding engineering memos (including a water-utility \"ability to serve\" email noted in the packet). The applicant also agreed to provide clarified language for deed covenants or condo documents as appropriate for the chosen ownership model.","The Saco Planning Board continued the public hearing for a proposal to convert 439 Main Street into seven condominium units with four designated as affordable, citing unresolved questions about whether units will be held as rentals or sold and how a 30-year affordability restriction would be enforced.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Board continues 800 Portland Road 49‑unit condominium review to June 17

Planning board finds 3‑lot Smutty Lane subdivision application complete but schedules site walk and further engineering review

Planning board continues review of 439 Main Street condo conversion after questions over long-term affordable controls