Hotel Bridgton gains final approval; challenge expected
By Wayne E. Rivet
Staff Writer
Hotel Bridgton is off the Bridgton Planning Board’s table, gaining final approval Monday after 16 months of presentations, revisions and deliberations.
The next hurdle will be a likely challenge by the Save Kennard Street group, presently represented by Attorney David Lourie. The group has 30 days to file an appeal.
Developer Justin McIver, owner of Main Eco Homes, issued the following statement Tuesday regarding the decision and the process:
“It is our firm belief that everyone here in town will stand to benefit from both the project itself and the long-term economic impact that it will have on the community. With years of planning, studying and collaboration behind it, Hotel Bridgton has been meticulously designed with our hometown in mind, and we are proud to be able to move forward with this endeavor in what we believe could be a major turning point in the social and economic development of the entire region,” he said.
McIver added, “Beyond that, we are also proud of Bridgton for both the suggestions and the scrutiny that the town brought to the planning board with regards to the hotel, as we are convinced that both of these contributed to honing and refining the final plans to the best they possibly could be.”
He also thanked those who supported the plan during the lengthy review process.
“Your dedication and commitment made all the difference at every stage in the process, and we could not have come close to such a quality final product without your input,” McIver said. “We greatly appreciate all of the contributions that so many of you have made, and future generations will appreciate all of the good that will come to pass thanks to your efforts.”
• The permittee shall comply with all plans and specifications which have been received by the Planning Board in connection with the proposal, all oral commitments regarding the proposal that were made by the applicant or its agents to the Planning Board in the course of its review, and these conditions of approval. Any variation therefrom which is undertaken without approval from the Planning Board constitutes a violation.
• The permittee shall secure and comply with all applicable licenses, permits, authorizations, and requirements of all federal and state agencies prior to starting construction.
• Construction activities authorized in this permit must be substantially started within two years of the date of a final, nonappealable decision. Construction activities must be substantially completed within five years of the date of a final, nonappealable decision, unless the cause of the delay of construction activities neither was nor could have been anticipated or was beyond the reasonable control of the permittee or the permittee’s contractors.
• The permittee shall install the plantings on the north shore of Stevens Brook identified on the landscaping plan immediately after rough grading is completed.
• Shrubbery, at least two to three-foot tall, shall be planted along the inside portion of fencing to be installed along the Perham and Kilgore lot.
• The permittee shall strictly adhere to its landscaping plan, and shall submit a report to the CEO upon completion of all revegetation.
• Fencing shall be additionally reinforced in any areas that are proposed to be used for snow storage in order to withstand winter snow load conditions.
• The permittee shall arrange to have signage installed at the Hotel Site, and work with the town to install directional signs on public rights-of-way, at or near the Bacon Street, Kennard Street, and Highland Street (subject to town authorization) driveway entrances that allow right turns only from the Hotel Site onto Bacon Street and, except for safety or emergency vehicles, prohibits all vehicles (including without limitation construction vehicles, service vehicles, shuttles, buses, and guest/employee vehicles) from accessing the Hotel Site using the Kennard Street driveway entrance. For the avoidance of doubt, construction vehicles during the construction phase shall not enter the Hotel Site using Kennard Street.
• The permittee shall arrange for the installation of a surveillance camera at the satellite lot that is monitored by employees at the hotel structure on a 24-hour, seven-days-per-week basis, and shall arrange for transportation of guests after dusk between the hotel structure and the Satellite Lot.
• Downward-facing, full cut-off (shielded) lighting shall be installed on the satellite lot.
• No boats or boat trailers shall be allowed to park in any of the parking areas on the Hotel Site or the satellite lot, and the permittee shall arrange to have signage installed at or near all driveway entrances so stating.
• The permittee shall comply with Chapter 7.7 of the Maine Department of Environmental Protection BMP Design Manual for manmade pervious surfaces. For the first three months following construction, porous pavement shall be inspected weekly and thereafter as specified in the Stormwater Infrastructure Inspection & Maintenance Manual. All inspections shall be performed by a qualified professional engineer with a soils background.
• Prior to connecting the Hotel Site to the water main, the permittee shall consult with the State Fire Marshal’s Office to ensure that the water main from Main Street to Bacon Street and the connecting water main from Bacon Street to the Hotel Site meet all State Fire Marshal’s Office requirements and recommendations for water flow capability. At the time that the wastewater force main connections are made to the public sewer system, the permittee shall ensure that the wastewater superintendent is present to inspect the connections at permittee’s cost.
• The permittee shall prepare a pool drainage maintenance plan detailing the procedures to follow for filling and draining the pool, as well as backup plans if there is a malfunction of the pump station, and shall enter into a written agreement with a licensed hauler for filling and draining the hotel pool so that pool water is not taken from the public water system or disposed of in the public sewer system. The maintenance plan and agreement shall be provided to the wastewater superintendent.
• Any proposed bar in the hotel structure shall be restricted to a self-service bar that is licensed without kitchen equipment. • The permittee shall install fire detection and fire suppression systems, which must be inspected and tested by the State Fire Marshal’s Office. The system shall include a (FDC) Fire Department five-inch (Storz) connection to supply the sprinkler system that is accessible from the front parking lot. • The permittee shall install a “Knox Box” containing entrance keys and other keys for emergency personnel to access essential areas. • All noise-generating outdoor activities on the Hotel Site, including entertainment functions or gatherings at the outdoor fire pit or patio area, shall cease at 11 p.m.
• The hotel shall be and remain classified as at least a mid-scale or upper-scale quality hotel.
• Provision shall be made for a minimum of four (4) accessible parking spaces located at the Hotel Site, of which one space must be van-accessible.
• Prior to the start of construction, the permittee shall submit to the Town Manager, CEO, and Town Attorney a performance guarantee in the form of a cash contribution (via certified check payable to the town, a deposit into a savings account, or a certificate of deposit) for the establishment of an escrow account naming the town as owner, a performance bond payable to the Town and issued by a surety company acceptable to the Town Manager, or an irrevocable letter of credit from a financial institution acceptable to the Town Manager establishing funding for construction of the approved project from which the town may draw if construction is incomplete or inadequate. The performance guarantee shall be in a form acceptable to the Town Attorney, and shall (1.) be in an amount adequate to cover not less than the total estimated costs of all demolition and infrastructure elements specified in this approval (including without limitation, installation costs for the parking areas, driveways, and sidewalks; and installation costs of all nonstructural features including the stormwater and phosphorus control system, erosion control measures, utilities, public water and wastewater system connections, landscaping/vegetation, fencing, signage, and lighting), and the cost of remediation to return the Hotel Site to green space and (2.) contain a detailed construction schedule, cost estimates for each phase of construction (taking into account inflation), provisions for inspections of each phase of construction, provisions for release of part or all of the performance guarantee to the permittee, and a date after which the permittee will be in default and the town shall have access to the funds to complete construction. Prior to the release of any part of the performance guarantee, the Town Manager and CEO shall determine to their satisfaction, in part upon the report of a licensed engineer or other qualified individual retained by the town at the permittee’s expense and any other departments who may be involved, that the proposed construction and improvements meet or exceed the design and construction requirements for any given phase of construction for which the release is requested.
Final touches
With town election looming and a change in the planning board makeup expected (with chairman Steve Collins retiring), planners looked to close out the review process Monday afternoon.
The review of the Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, which were enacted upon during two lengthy deliberation sessions last week, were made with planners either accepting the application with conditions discussed (see final list on Page 3A) or a move to reject the project.
Collins noted that the information gathering process closed on May 22, and to accept any new material would only occur if a public hearing was reopened, “which no one has desire to do so,” he noted.
Before moving ahead, Collins pointed out that the board had received a request by Attorney Lourie for 34 additional findings of fact. The board had also received rebuttal from the developer’s attorney.
Response Mark Bauer on behalf of the application
“The board is familiar with the content and substance of correspondences, and may accept Lourie’s (findings), reject all or go down the list and pick and choose among them,” Collins said. “The applicant sent rebuttals, which we may consider or disregard them.”
The “to do” list also included clarifications of conditions, which the town attorney was prepared to assist with revisions. Planners were reminded by counsel that the final document was “their document” and the group needed to be comfortable with the wording and conditions. The board was told that the task Monday was not to revisit each vote from last week’s deliberations, but act as a “collective whole and represent the majority decision.”
Collins noted that some of the individual criteria were a split vote, “but the time now is to set aside individual’s vote and represent the majority decision.”
Various items discussed included:
• Planner Deb Brusini looked for clarification regarding site grading in respect to the landscaping of the property.
“The idea is to get the landscaping cleaned up near the stream and not until the end,” she said.
Another point was if there were any changes to the landscaping plan, the developer would need to notify the planning board.
• Planner Dee Miller raised questions about signage away from the hotel site, regarding certain vehicles not being authorized to use Kennard Street. As a condition, the applicant will work with town officials regarding installation of signage to address this point.
• Brusini noted that construction vehicles will not access the hotel site via Kennard Street.
• A licensed hauler will be responsible for bringing in water for the hotel’s pool, as well as removing water as part of the pool’s maintenance. No water for the pool will come from the public water system, nor will the pool be drained using the public sewer system.
• Planners also looked at requiring McIver to post a performance guarantee, in the form of an insurance bond to be sure construction is built to conditions/specifications and the applicant has financial capacity to do so. McIver’s attorney asked the board to reduce the size of bond to size of infrastructure only. Miller’s recommendation was for the entire project. Brusini simply wants to insure if the applicant fails to complete the project, money is available to demolish and return the site to green space. Planners decided to go with a performance guarantee as a condition.
At 6:22 p.m., the board voted 5-0 to approve the application with conditions.
