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Planning Board Gives First Approval to New Hannaford

Posted on: Thursday, 15 June 2006, 18:00 CDT

By Gary Remal, Kennebec Journal, Augusta, Maine

Jun. 14--AUGUSTA -- Despite continued opposition from neighbors on Tuesday, members of the Augusta Planning Board gave preliminary approval to the construction of a new 48,000-square-foot Hannaford supermarket once Cony High School is demolished.

The six members of the Planning Board voting Tuesday gave unanimous approval to the $9.65 million project.

The second and final vote is expected to come next month, city Services Director Michael Duguay said. But Hannaford real estate planner Mary Gamage said she could not say for sure when construction would begin if final approval comes in July.

Gamage said construction of the new supermarket could begin as soon as the end of this year, if final Planning Board approval is forthcoming. But she said the start date could be put off longer, depending upon her company's construction budget.

The project still requires some environmental approvals in addition to the city review.

"At this point it's not on our construction schedule because we haven't got all our approvals yet," Gamage said.

Board members asked for a number of conditions, including a reduction in lighting and improved landscape screening. Robert Corey said he wanted assurance before the final vote that all the legal issues that could trip up the project were resolved.

The project has faced fierce opposition from neighbors and others who say the high school site is not appropriate for a large commercial development.

The project has been the subject of several court actions, a referendum last year in which city voters supported the plan and another petition drive now under way attempting to limit future use of the land to public educational or athletic uses being challenged in the state Supreme Court. Just last week the City Council approved a zoning change that opened the way for the new store.

"This has been the most examined, thoroughly dissected project in the city that I know of," said Planning Board Chairman Paul Harris.

Cecil Munson, a longtime opponent of the project and member of the Eastside Neighborhood Network, said it should not be built there. "This is the wrong project in that location," Munson said. "There are other locations on the east side much more appropriate for this."

Liz Soares, a nearby Cony Street resident who is also a Kennebec Journal columnist, told the board she continued to oppose the entire project but, given the reality that it would probably be approved, she asked for several changes to reduce the impact of the store on its neighbors.

Soares asked for a further restriction of hours of operation so the store would be closed at least eight hours during the night with deliveries allowed only during store hours, and for restrictions in lighting and sign size on her street.

Harris said the board would look closely at minimizing light emissions, but members did not take her other suggestions.

Others asked that the entrance and parking for the historic flat-iron building connect to the main Stone Street entrance for the supermarket to reduce impact on Cony Street. But both Gamage and City Engineer Lionel Cayer said that would be impractical.

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Copyright (c) 2006, Kennebec Journal, Augusta, Maine

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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DEG, DELB,

Source: Kennebec Journal, Augusta, Maine

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