How To Improve Service In Arundel

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1 Draft of Economic Development Strategy - Town of Arundel Chapter Infrastructure, Transportation and Zoning 1. Infrastructure The lack of infrastructure in Arundel could present significant problems in promoting economic growth. This chapter will attempt to outline those problems, and will be broken down into the following sections: A) Electrical Service B) Water Supply C) Sewer Facilities D) Natural Gas E) Internet Service F) Telecommunications A) Electrical Service Electrical Service in Arundel is presently supplied by two utilities, Central Maine Power and Kennebunk Light & Power. While basic service is available throughout the municipality, three phase power, which could be critical for further economic development, is presently only available along sections of U.S. Route 1 (Portland Road). The northern section of Route 1, from Campground Road to the Biddeford Town Line is serviced by Central Maine Power, and a shorter southern section extending from Limerick Road to the Kennebunk Town Line is serviced by Kennebunk Light & Power. In the areas served by Central Maine Power, residents and businesses have the option of purchasing power under the Public Utilities Commission s Standard Offer or from a variety of retail electricity suppliers. Since it is expected that future commercial development will be primarily located along the Route 1 Corridor, and possibly along portions of Route 111, it should be anticipated that three phase power will be needed eventually along the remainder of Route 1 between Limerick Road and Campground Road, and extended along Route 111 from the Biddeford town line. B) Water Supply Public water supply in Arundel is only available along Route 1 and is provided by the Kennebunk, Kennebunkport &Wells Water District. A 20 inch main extends the entire length of Route 1, running through the BI, HC and CCS Zones. A 16 inch branch runs off the main to the southeast along Log Cabin Road.

2 A total of eight fire hydrants are located along this approximately 4 mile section of Route 1, and 1 fire hydrant is located on Log Cabin Road near the end of the branch line. It is anticipated that the water supply is sufficient for anticipated economic growth along Route 1. If further growth is planned for the Route 111 area, however, lack of a public water supply could be a major constraint due to the salt water aquifer which adversely affects many of the privately owned wells in this district. C) Sewer Facilities The Town of Arundel presently has no sewer facilities, which could be a severe deterrent to economic development, especially along Route 1 where poor soil conditions restrict septic disposal systems. This could become a major issue if zoning changes are made to encourage more densely configured development in what is presently the CCS Zone. More study is needed to quantify the effect of poor soils on available vacant land in this area. It is anticipated that a sewer line from north of Campground Road to connect with the Kennebunk Sewer District could become a priority item if monies become available for infrastructure improvements. D) Natural Gas Two natural gas pipelines run through Arundel. One of these is owned by Unitil and runs along the length of the Eastern Trail, adjacent to the BI Zone. The other is owned by Maritimes Northeast and is situated along the CMP Corridor. Although the cost of installing a pressure reducing station, which is necessary for local distribution, has been prohibitive to date, there has been some interest expressed by potential end users in exploring a public-private partnership which might make such a project feasible. To this end, the Town Manager has pursued the possibility of state assistance with Arundel s State Representative, and has also inquired into licensing and regulatory requirements. Efforts are ongoing to try to make natural gas distribution a reality in Arundel. E) Internet Service Internet service is presently available throughout Arundel with speeds of up to 20 Mbps. While this is adequate for many users, it should be noted that other Maine communities presently offer services of up to 100 Mbps, which puts Arundel at a competitive disadvantage. The Town Manager has been informed by the Executive Director of the ConnectME authority, which oversees the 3RB program, that grant funding for improving internet service should become available around July Further discussions are planned with the Southern Maine Planning and Development Council, MobilizeME, and local ISP providers to determine the possibility of improving internet service speeds for Arundel and the surrounding area. F) Telecommunications Arundel has excellent telecommunications service throughout the town. Landline service is

3 provided by Time Warner, GWI and Fairpoint. Cell phone reception is excellent throughout Arundel from several providers such as AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint. 2. Transportation Located approximately 15 miles south of Portland and 85 miles north of Boston, Arundel has excellent transportation facilities. Both US Route 1 and I-95 (Maine Turnpike) run right through Arundel. Three of Arundel s four business districts, the BI, HC and CCS are located on Route 1, and the fourth business district, the CCN is located less than a mile from I-95. Although I-95 does not have an exit directly into Arundel, the Biddeford exit is located less than a mile from Arundel s northern town line, and the Kennebunk exit is located less than a mile from Arundel s southern town line, providing easy access to the interstate system from anywhere in town. Scheduled air service from this area is available at the Portland International Jetport, approximately 15 miles to the North, Manchester (NH) Airport, approximately 75 miles to the southwest, and Boston Logan Airport, approximately 85 miles to the south. Airline details and flight schedules are available on the Arundel website in the Economic Development \ Transportation section, as well as connecting bus schedules to Boston and Manchester. General aviation services are available at three local airports. Biddeford Municipal, the smallest of the three is adjacent to the Arundel/Biddeford town line. Sanford Municipal, a larger facility with over 6,000 feet of runway is located approximately 10 miles west of Arundel. Pease International, located about 30 miles south of Arundel in Portsmouth, NH, has a runway of over 11,000 feet and is capable of handling any type of aircraft currently in use. Amtrak presently operates passenger rail service through Arundel, with stops at Wells, 8 miles south, and Saco, 7 miles north. Amtrak s Downeaster service runs between Brunswick, ME, and North Station in Boston. Bus services are available from Portland and Portsmouth, NH. Schedules and fares are available on the Arundel website. Car rentals are available in Arundel through Enterprise Rent-a-Car. Transportation of air freight and ground freight is provided in Arundel by Fedex and UPS, which both have warehouses within ten miles of town, as well as a variety of trucking companies and freight forwarders with terminal locations in the Portland and Boston areas. Transportation of ocean freight is available through Portland where the steamship line Eimskip provides regular service to Europe and Iceland for both loose freight and full containers. Other overseas points can be accessed through the Port of Boston. Intermodal service is available in Allston, MA (approximately 90 miles south of Arundel) and Worcester, MA for rail connections to West Coast ports. Trucking connections to both Portland and Massachusetts points are available from a variety of local truckers, freight forwarders and custom house brokers. More

4 information about these services is available on the Arundel website. 3. Zoning It should be noted that Arundel s existing Land Use Plan is under review and that the possibility exists for significant changes during the coming year (2015). Because of the uncertain outcome of proposed changes, the following is a description of the existing Land Use Plan, followed by a brief description of proposed changes. The Existing Land Use Plan identifies two broad categories of areas in accordance with State Law; Growth Areas in which anticipated residential and nonresidential development will be accommodated and Rural Areas in which significant development will be discouraged and the rural character retained. GROWTH AREAS The following designations establish the areas intended to accommodate most of the Town s anticipated development. Urban Residential (R-1) This designation is on the west side of Route One, between the Limerick, and Campground Roads, and the area New Road and the Clearview Estates neighborhood. Residential uses are allowed at a density of 1 unit per acre. Higher density is possible (up to 2 units per acre) for residential projects that preserve open space and conform to design standards as long as ground water is protected. Nonresidential uses are limited to community and government uses, non-motorized recreational facilities, and home businesses. Suburban Residential (R-2) This designation applies to an area along the Limerick and New Roads between the two Urban Residential areas and to an area on the east side of Route One along the Log Cabin and Old Post Roads. The areas designated as Suburban Residential are intended to accommodate good quality, moderate density neighborhoods. Uses will be similar to the Urban Residential areas. Residential uses will have density of one dwelling unit per two acres. Higher density residential development may be possible (up to 1 units per acre) for residential projects that preserve open space and conform to village design standards as long as such densities will not likely lead to ground water contamination. Community Commercial North (CCN) This designation applies to the core of the Route 111 rural village, most of the area currently designated as a residential transition zone, extending west 4100 feet from the Biddeford City line on the north side of Route 111 and to Ledge Cliff Drive on the south side of Route 111. The intention is to allow for a range of commercial and nonresidential uses that would serve both the village and Route 111 traffic as well as residential uses, especially as part of mixed-use buildings. A range of nonresidential uses including small to medium retail, office,

5 and service uses as well as low-impact manufacturing would be allowed, but not larger or more intense uses that would impact the surrounding residential area or generate significant volumes of traffic. In addition, a variety of residential uses will be allowed. All development shall conform to design standards. Site conditions will determine the maximum density of development. Community Commercial South (CCS) The Community Commercial South designation applies to the southern end of the Route One Corridor and is intended to provide an area to accommodate small to medium retail, office, and service uses as well as low-impact manufacturing. Residential and community uses will be included in this district. The uses allowed in the Community Commercial South designation would be similar to those allowed in the current HC-1 Zone. Provisions would be included for residential uses that are part of a mixed-use project such as office or retail on the first floor with apartments on the second floor and for multifamily housing, but new single-family subdivisions should be excluded from this area. Development standards should provide site design standards that encourage development with buildings located closer to the street with parking to the side or rear of the building and access from side streets or shared access drives. All development shall conform to design standards. Site conditions will determine the maximum density of development. Highway Commercial (HC) The Highway Commercial designation includes an area south of the Log Cabin Road intersection and on both sides of Route 1 where there have historically been auto retail and warehousing uses. This district is intended to accommodate larger, more intense uses than those permitted in the Community Commercial districts, including larger retail establishments, retail uses with outdoor display or storage of merchandise, self-storage facilities, and warehousing. This district will not have the variety of uses envisioned for the Business/Office Park/Industrial area, but will have similar development and design standards. Development should be well designed and attractive through the use of buffering and landscaping requirements. The land use standards will encourage the creation of combined accesses and lots with their access from internal streets or drives. Business/Office Park/Industrial (BI) The Business/Office Park/Industrial designation encompasses the northern end of the Route One Corridor. The intention of this designation is to accommodate larger, more intense nonresidential uses but in a manner that creates a high quality environment that is attractive to better quality uses. It expands the current HC-2 district to the west to the natural gas pipeline. This area will allow a wide range of nonresidential uses. Residential uses are limited to those accessory to a business use. Retail uses are restricted to those not appropriate in the Community Commercial South area except that restaurants, sandwich shops and convenience stores will be allowed as well as accessory sales as part of another use. Standards will focus on assuring that development is well designed and attractive using buffering and landscaping requirements. Minimal design standards for buildings will be implemented. Standards will encourage the creation of combined accesses and lots with their access from internal streets or drives.

6 RURAL AREAS The following land use designations establish the areas of the community that are designated as Rural Areas or areas in which large amounts of development would be discouraged. Rural Residential (R-3) This designation is intended to allow low-density residential development that preserves the rural character of these areas. Allowed uses will include residential, home businesses, agriculture and other natural resource uses, but exclude uses that generate traffic, noise, or similar impacts. Residential development in these areas should be 1 unit per 2 acres. All subdivisions of 5 or more lots should be required to be conservation subdivisions in which 50% or more of the developable land is set aside in permanent open space. Rural Conservation (R-4) The Rural Conservation designation is intended to preserve the rural nature of the outlying areas of the community that are still predominantly rural in character by significantly limiting development while accommodating traditional working rural activities and preserving open space. Allowed uses will be limited to residential, agriculture and other natural resource uses, agricultural processing and demonstration facilities, home businesses, and traditional uses found in a working rural landscape. Residential uses will be allowed at a density of unit per 3 acres. All subdivisions should be required to preserve at least 50% of the developable area as open space. Creation of individual lots that are smaller than three acres provided additional land is set aside as open space should also be allowed. The Town should work with land trusts and state agencies and should establish and fund a program for acquisition of the development rights from willing sellers to permanently restrict their land from development. Natural Resource Conservation (NRC) This designation is intended for areas with significant natural resource value where little or no development should occur and where activities that can potentially impact the resource value are regulated. It is located along the Kennebunk River and around Brimstone Pond and its associated high value wetlands and wildlife habitat. The Natural Resource Conservation designation should generally be limited to low impact and non-structural uses similar to the current Resource Protection zoning. Within 100 feet of the river, new housing should be prohibited but existing uses should be allowed to expand as long as they maintain adequate buffering and do not encroach closer on the river. New homes should be allowed in the rest of the district. New single-family residential uses should be required to have at least a 3-acre lot. Corridor Protection Overlay (CPO) The Corridor Protection Overlay designation covers most of the Route 111 corridor and is intended to preserve this road as a major traffic route while maintaining the rural, scenic character of the corridor. Any new lot should be required to have its road frontage on a road other than Route 111 where possible, Access to new uses in the corridor should be combined and the number of new curb cuts minimized. Development standards should require that the scenic character of the corridor be preserved.

7 POSSIBLE CHANGES IN ZONING A review of the Arundel Land Use Plan is presently being conducted by the Comprehensive Plan Review Committee and the Arundel Planning Board. Every effort has been made to involve town residents in these discussions, but turnout has been minimal and conflicting points of view among participants has made finalizing a new ordinance difficult. The focus to date has been on existing and proposed business zones. Proposals still being debated include: A) The elimination of the CCS, CCN and HC zones. B) The creation of five new mixed use districts as follows: 1) DB1: Located at the southern end of the Route 1 Corridor. 2) DB2: Located behind and contiguous to the DB1 zone. 3) Gateway District: Located at the northern end of the Route 1 Corridor. 4) Town House Corner District: Located at the nexus of Arundel, Log Cabin, and Sinnott Road. 5) Alfred Road District: Located at the eastern end of Route 111. Each mixed use district is intended to accommodate a blend of business, residential and community uses, although standards would differ. Current and historical uses along with site conditions would dictate the nature and scope of uses permitted in each district. It is proposed that all legally existing businesses and associated structures presently operating in these districts would be classified as permitted uses. Although discussion of changes to residential zones has been initiated, it is too early to speculate on what these changes might involve.