Raymond board delivers split verdict on Cape parking lot

Posted: Friday, January 23, 2015 1:29 pm | Updated: 1:30 pm, Fri Jan 23, 2015.

The Raymond Planning Board has delivered a split decision on the town of Frye Islands proposed Raymond Cape park-and-ride facility, delaying once more approval of the long-awaited parking lot.

The board voted 3-3 on the application Jan. 14, with Greg Foster, Ben Krauter and William Priest in favor, and Robert ONeill, Steve Linne and Bruce Sanford opposed. The split vote effectively tables the application until the boards next meeting on Feb. 11.

According to Danielle Loring, Raymonds code enforcement administrative assistant, members of the board expressed concern that the proposal violates the towns shoreland zoning provisions relating to off-site parking lots.

In March 2014, the board denied the island towns original application for a 43-car parking lot and ring road on a 25-acre lot of undeveloped land across from Ferry Landing Road, on the grounds that the proposed four-way intersection with Cape Road and Ferry Landing Road was unsafe and that the proposed parking lot was too small. The advocacy group Friends of Raymond Cape fiercely opposed the original proposal.

On July 18, Frye Island submitted a substantially modified application for a 50-car parking lot on the same property, this time based on feedback from the Friends of Raymond Cape. The proposal, supported by the advocacy group, eliminates the proposed ring road in favor of walking paths, and replaces the 25-foot light poles with 12-foot lights.

There are reduced lighting levels in the parking lot, and weve attempted to retain the rural character of the neighborhood by minimizing features like paving and unnecessary lighting, said Mark Gray, Frye Islands design engineer.

The application also sets the parking lot farther back from Cape Road, in an effort to maintain the areas rural character.

But board members are concerned that the lot is set too far back, in violation of the shoreland zoning provisions, Loring said. According to the provisions, off-site parking lots shall be allowed if they are within 300 feet of the lot containing the associated permitted use, a measure intended to ensure pedestrian safety. In a memo to the board, the towns attorney, Mary Costigan, suggested that although the proposal does not meet the 300-feet standard, the board could waive the requirement, as the proposal provides a safe pedestrian route to the ferry.

Theyre kind of like splitting hairs, you know, Loring said, whether or not the standard of meeting the 300-foot access drive could be waived.

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Raymond board delivers split verdict on Cape parking lot