Auburn’s Planning Board has met twice to consider rezoning 1,687 acres of Auburn’s Urban Residential zone to one called Traditional Neighborhood Development District (T-4.2).
The proposal increases the allowable housing density in the area by a factor of eight, allows a much wider range of commercial development, relaxes parking restrictions, and changes the character of buildings allowed.
This is a big change that affects four of Auburn’s five ward districts.
Even though most of the citizens in attendance at the Planning Board meetings spoke against the proposal, the Planning Board voted to recommend the change to the City Council. The Council must now take comments from the public and either decide to officially adopt it or return the issue to the Planning Board for further modification.
This happened before in Auburn when an unpopular proposal to rezone the Minot Avenue corridor was made. After the Planning Board forwarded a controversial recommendation to the City Council, it decided, after public comment, to send it back to the Planning Board for greater consideration. With greater input the Planning Board recommended a better, more acceptable rezoning change which the Council then adopted.
The City Council needs to hear public opinion on this zoning change also so it can return it to the Planning Board for improvements. The process is lengthy, but it works.
Denis Bergeron, Auburn
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