Habitat plan deemed complete, final vote could occur March 1 - Courier-Gazette & Camden Herald

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ROCKLAND — The Rockland Planning Board voted Feb. 1 the application by Midcoast Habitat for Humanity for a housing development on Talbot Avenue was complete.

The Board also scheduled a formal public hearing on the Habitat project for March 1. A final vote could be held at that meeting, which begins at 5:15 p.m.

The Board directed the developer to return with a statement from the engineering company Wright Pierce that the changes made to the stormwater report were satisfactory. Some clarifications were made on Habitat’s stormwater plan after an initial review by Wright-Pierce. The city hired Wright Pierce to peer review the one done on behalf of Habitat. Habitat paid for the independent review.

“Overall the plan looks in pretty good shape,” Wright-Pierce stated in a Dec. 30 email to the city.

Habitat plans to build 13 residences on the 10.6-acre lot. Half of the land is wetlands, but no homes will be built on that section of the lot, although the road will pass through some wetlands.

The first phase will be the six 700 square-foot homes to be managed by the Knox County Homeless Coalition. The second phase will be two duplexes with a total footprint of 1,800 square feet, also to be managed by the Homeless Coalition. The final phase would be the three Habitat homes of 900 square feet. The Habitat homes may have second floors.

The project is scaled back from the original plan of 18 residences.

Habitat Executive Director Tia Anderson told the Board at its Feb. 1 meeting the organization was not inclined to redo the plan again to save some trees neighbors say they want preserved. Anderson said Habitat has revised its plan several times in order to meet requests from neighbors.

“This is an affordable housing project. We can only redesign it so many times before it is not affordable,” she said.

Neighbors have fought the project since it was first proposed in November 2020. Arguments included concerns about stormwater runoff as well the project not being in character with the remainder of the neighborhood.

Retail marijuana shop

The Planning Board also determined at the Feb. 1 meeting the application by Northeast Kind Assets, LLC, also known as Sweet Dirt, LLC of Eliot, Maine for a retail marijuana shop at 305 Main St. was complete.

The Board will visit the site 4 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 15 and then hold a formal public hearing at 5:15 that evening. A final vote could be held that night.

The site is the former Brass Compass Cafe.

The Brass Compass closed at that location on Nov. 1. Lynn Archer sold the building to Tres Comas, LLC of Portland; RSP Main 1, LLC of South Berwick; and RSP Main 2, LLC of South Berwick. Josh Soley, the majority owner, said last month he planned to lease the property to a restaurant or retail business, but there were no tenants yet.

The application states the project will involve $175,000 of renovations and be completed within four months from city approval.

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