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Southern Maine Planning & Development Commission
SMPDC Winter
Newsletter
Ogunquit, Maine
Southern Maine Planning & Development Commission
Community Development Block Grant Gap Funding to Assist Businesses
The Maine Office of Community Development has published the 2018
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Proposed Statement. The
document can be found at
http://www.maine.gov/decd/meocd/cdbg/statement.shtm
The 2018 CDBG Proposed Statement details how CDBG funds will be
distributed for FY 2018. This document contains a list of funding per
program as well as Letter of Intent and application due dates. There are
two economic development programs that are targeted towards
economic development projects and activities.
The Economic Development Program (EDP) provides communities with
gap funding to assist businesses in the creation/retention of jobs for low-
and moderate income persons. There are two types of grants for the EDP
program. There are grants to municipalities for relocation, demolition,
clearance, construction, reconstruction, installation and rehabilitation
associated with public infrastructure projects such as water and sewer
improvements, flood and drainage improvements, publicly-owned
commercial and industrial buildings, parking, streets, curbs, gutters,
sidewalks, etc. All public infrastructure must be owned by the
municipality or public or private utility and be in support of an identified
business. In addition, there are grants to municipalities for direct business
support for capital and non-capital equipment, land and site
improvements, rehabilitation or construction of commercial or industrial
buildings, job training, working capital and capital equipment and be in
support of an identified business.
National Brownfields
Conference
Paul Schumacher, SMPDC
Executive Director, will be
speaking at the EPA National
Brownfields Conference in
Pittsburgh, PA in December.
The presentation will address
leveraging brownfields funds
across a region. Regional
Planning Commissions (RPCs)
and Council of Governments
(COGs) struggle with equitable
community disbursement of
Brownfields monies.
Communities all want a big
piece of the Brownfields pie.
This panel will discuss how
regional entities in Maine have
created transformative
programs, and maximized
public and private partnerships
using Brownfields Assessment
and Revolving Loan Funds (RLF)
monies to convert Brownfields
from community liabilities into
community assets while trying
to disburse monies throughout
very diverse cities and towns.
“The Economic Development Program (EDP)
provides communities with gap funding to assist
businesses in the creation/retention of jobs for
low-and moderate income persons.”
SMPDC Newsletter SMPDC Winter Edition Volume 6 Issue 3
Southern Maine Planning & Development Commission
Acquisition is not an allowable activity under this group. Under this category a private business may receive grant
funds to support job creation.
The maximum award amount for both programs is $500,000 and the deadline for letters of intent is February 23,
2018.The Micro-Enterprise Assistance Grant (MEA) Program provides grant funds to assist in innovative solutions to
problems faced by micro-enterprise businesses. Assistance to businesses may be in the form of grants or loans at the
discretion of the community. Eligible activities under the Micro-Enterprise Assistance category are grants or loans to
for-profit businesses that can be used for working capital and interior renovations, façade grants or loans for exterior
improvements, including signage, painting, siding, awnings, lighting, display windows and other approved
improvements; and eligible planning activities necessary to complete the
Project Development Phase. Sewer, water, storm drainage, parking, roads
or streets and other infrastructure improvements and buildings solely for
residential use are not eligible. The maximum award amount is $150,000
and the deadline for Letters of Intent is the February 9, 2018.
Assistance in the explanation of CDBG programs and to provide information
on the development of applications is available from SMPDC at no cost to
the municipalities. These services are financed through a contract with the
Department of Economic and Community Development, and made possible
as a result of your annual dues payment. We are able to meet with you to
explain the types of activities eligible under the various grant programs,
match the grant programs to the community and economic development
needs of your community, or provide information on the development of
an application. Feel free to contact Chuck Morgan by phone at 571-7065 or
email at cmorgan@smpdc.org for more information.
Thank-You’s &
Congratulations
SMPDC would like to thank
everyone who contributed
to the development of,
and purchased our first
edition of the Maine Land
Use law book! Of the 850
books printed, we sold
836! This has been a huge
success! THANK YOU
Congratulations to the
Town of Berwick for
passing hybrid form-based
code in November to help
shape the community’s
downtown!
Congratulations to the
Town of Limerick for
passing their zoning
ordinance in November!
Briarcliff Farms, West Baldwin Maine
Southern Maine Planning & Development Commission
Personnel Moves at SMPDC Meet Our New Hires
The times and people are
changing at SMPDC. As some
know, Jamel Torres, our
Transportation Planner has
moved on to the Assistant
Planner position in Scarborough.
Congrats and good luck to Jamel
who provided us with some top
notch assistance in his two years
here.
SMPDC has just hired Abbie
Sherwin to take the position of
Land Use/Transportation
Planner. Abbie is an under
graduate of Wheaton College
with a M.S. in Natural Resources
from UNH. Abbie worked as a
NOAA Coastal Management
Fellow for the Maine Dept. of
Agriculture, Conservation and
Forestry (DACF) for two years.
She is currently employed by the
NH Floodplain Management
Program. Abbie will be joining
SMPDC at the end of December
and be working on transportation
projects, Comprehensive Plans,
the SMPDC coastal contract,
community resiliency and a
number of other projects.
SMPDC has also recently hired
Ashleigh Tatarcyk as a part time
Community Outreach Specialist.
Ashleigh has a B.A from USM in
Sustainable Tourism and
Hospitality with a concentration
in Community Development.
Ashleigh spent time in Cuba as
Research Assistant, studying
Cuba’s tourism infrastructure
while living aboard the Tall Ship
“The Harvey Gamage”. She also
worked at GPCOG for some time,
working on the Portland Food
Launch and helping to organize
other events. Ashleigh will be
helping SMPDC with our
publications, meeting
facilitations, the website and
data collection and research.
We welcome both new members
to the team and look forward to
working with them.
A Note from Lee Jay
Feldman Director of Planning
Planning Boards, local ordinances
and the processes which we all
have followed have their
differences town by town (thank
you Home Rule) but there comes
a moment in time when we have
to stop and ask; How well is this
working? It works for my town so
it should work for everybody
else! That may not be the case!
Recently at the Maine Municipal
Annual Conference, I had the
good fortune to team with Beth
DellaValle, AICP, Sanford’s
Planning Director along with Phil
Saucier, Land Use Attorney of
Bernstein Shur to talk about
recent court cases and the effect
these cases are having on Maine
Land Use regulations.
Time and again, the Maine Law
Court has been handing down
rulings that suggest the
municipalities need to change
their regulations to be more
standardized in the approach. I
believe both worlds can still
exist! In my estimation it all
comes down to the local process,
from that respect there is a
process during the review of
projects that ALL boards should
follow (and many do not). By
following this process, the
board(s) will put themselves
legally on a better footing to
withstand any challenges that
may occur.
Nubble Beach, Maine
Southern Maine Planning & Development Commission
Working with so many of your
communities as I do, I get it!
Every town is different and you
all have done it your way for 100
years BUT that one legal
challenge could be a big one. I
think it is very important to at
least look at the process you
follow from initial application
acceptance through to the
Findings of Fact, and make sure
you follow the well-established
formula that MMA, SMPDC and
your legal team may have laid
out for you. I know that in the
past both Natalie Burns (SMPDC’s
attorney) and I have both
discussed this process at many
workshops, and I know MMA has
done the same. It may take a
little longer for the process to
unfold, it may make the applicant
very impatient, BUT it is for the
good of the applicant as well as
the town.
If any community is interested to
follow up on this process, I would
be happy to talk with you.
Updates Conferences and Sessions
1. Northeast Transportation Safety Conference on October 25th in Connecticut – Tom Reinauer was asked to attend and give a presentation focused on the Maine – New Hampshire Traffic Incident Management Committee, and items the Committee has been working on. The conference included over 250 attendees from Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and New York.
2. Lee Jay Presented the Maine Flood Resiliency Checklist booklet developed by Abbie Sherwin, a NOAA fellow with the Maine Coastal Program, a recent workshop sponsored by the Island Institute of Maine held at the Muskie school with 80 in attendance. Lee Jay had assisted Abbie with the development of this program, and worked with the City of Saco to conduct a test run during the development of the decklist.
3. Maine Storm water Conference on October 24th in Portland – Tom Reinauer gave a presentation with Jake Ammon from the Wells Reserve. Tom went over the process of developing a Decision Support Tool (DST) for culvert prioritization, and Jake explained how he took the DST and applied it to culvert infrastructure in the
Road Salt Bids
SMPDC continues to provide a
cost saving Cooperative
Purchasing Program to their
municipalities, schools and non-
profit agencies. The Road Salt
bid was awarded to Morton Salt
again this year. The delivered
price for Sodium Chloride is
$60.60/ton and Treated Ice-B-
Gone is $78.60/ton. To place an
order, please call Morton Salt at
1-855-665-4540.
Over the past few years SMPDC
municipalities have saved
hundreds of thousands of dollars
through the cooperative road salt
bid.
Our Copy Paper bid was awarded
to WB Mason. This year’s pricing
is:
•8 ½ X 11 - $23.65/case
•8 ½ X 14 - $32.87/case
•11 X 17 - $31.66/case
The Office Supply bid again this
year was combined with GPCOG.
WB Mason was awarded the bid.
As in the past, WB Mason
supplied a list of “everyday” used
office supplies at a much lower
price. To see this list, please
contact Marian at SMPDC.
SMPDC encourages their
municipalities, schools and non-
profit agencies to continue
participating in our bid process.
The more participants; the better
the pricing!
Southern Maine Planning & Development Commission
Town of York and other areas of the SMPDC region. The DST takes in to consideration several different categories, and provides a method for municipalities and agencies to rate culverts based on risk of damage and other factors such as infrastructure condition, habitat barriers and the location of the roadway.
4. Lee Jay recently moderated a session at the Maine
Municipal Association annual meeting in Augusta Dealing with Land Use law and the future of Land Use regulations in Maine. Lee Jay worked the session with Beth DellaValle, Planning Director of Sanford, and Phil Saucier, Land Use attorney, with Bernstein Shur of Portland. Approximately 40 people attend the session.
Upcoming Events
Safety- A Universal Challenge 67th Maine Transportation Conference. December 7th, 2017.
Technical and policy track discussions will examine a range of topics, from Colorado’s groundbreaking Road X system launched this fall and system-wide advances on Maine’s highways to efforts to improved work zone, railroad, bike-ped and autonomous vehicle safety.
Two Day Training Course: All Hazards Transportation Recovery Plan. January 23rd-24th, 2018.
The purpose of the course is to provide participants with the tools, knowledge, skills, and resources to develop an emergency transportation recovery plan that includes coordinated transit, TDM and ITS strategies and the use of social media to facilitate recovery.
Mojo, our office dog
Southern Maine Planning & Development Commission
Dredging Maine’s Coast
Feasibility of Purchasing a Dredge SMPDC Receives Maine Coastal
Program Grant to study
Feasibility of Purchasing a Dredge
for Use on a Regional Scale
SMPDC recently received a
competitive grant through the
Maine Coastal Program to assess
the feasibility of purchasing a
dredge for use along the coast in
southern Maine.
A number of harbors and rivers in
southern coastal Maine (and all
of Maine for that matter) have
been waiting years for their
permitted harbors to be dredged.
Due to high demand and lack of
funds these projects continue to
be delayed. Using the model of
Barnstable County,
Massachusetts, (where a county
purchased dredge has been
operating successfully for over 20
years) SMPDC and its project
partners (coastal towns in
southern Maine, MaineDOT,
Maine Geological Survey and the
Maine Coastal Program) will
conduct a feasibility analysis,
including a cost/benefit study, to
determine whether the purchase
of a dredge on a regional or
larger than regional scale can
provide a cost efficient and
environmentally sustainable
method of dredging harbors and
nourishing beaches when
possible. The southern portions
of the state’s coast line is made
up of miles of sandy beaches and
harbors. This region is dependent
on tourism to support many of
the year round business owners
who may rely solely on tourism
dollars for their revenue stream.
Without access to well-nourished
beaches and maintained harbors,
not only does the region suffer
but the state as a whole suffers
diminished sales tax if tourists
decide to spend these dollars
elsewhere. Additionally, the
southern Maine fishing and
lobster industries rely on
dredged harbors and access to
continue with their vibrant
efforts at providing fresh
seafood.
SMPDC has contracted with the
Woods Hole Group on Cape Cod
to assist with the study. The
study will be conducted over the
upcoming year.
Please call Paul Schumacher
(571-7065) if you would like to
learn more about the effort.
.
“This region is dependent on tourism…. Without
access to well-nourished beaches and
maintained harbors, not only does the region
suffer but the state as a whole suffers...”
Southern Maine Planning & Development Commission
SMPDC Staff
Paul Schumacher: Executive Director Lee Jay Feldman: Director of Planning Chuck Morgan: Economic and Community Development Director Tom Reinauer: Transportation Director Kathy Connor: Senior Planner Abbie Sherwin: Transportation & Land Use Planner Marian Alexandre: Office Manager David DiPerri: Contract Accountant Ashleigh Tatarcyk: Community Outreach Coordinator
SMPDC Executive Committee
Robert Heard Chairman Board of Selectmen 71 Main Street Porter, ME 04068
Perry Ellsworth Vice Chairman Town Manager 180 Main Street South Berwick, ME 03908
Jan Williams Treasurer 25 Allard Circle PO Box 105 Hiram, ME 04041
Gary Lamb Town Administrator Town of Waterboro 24 Townhouse Road East Waterboro, ME 04030
Beth Della Valle, AICP Sanford City Planner 917 Main St., Suite 300 Sanford, ME 04073
Werner Gilliam, CFM Town Planner PO Box 566 Kennebunkport, ME 04046
Jim Nimon Director Sanford Regional Econ Growth Council 917 Main Street Sanford, ME 04073 Kendra Amaral Town Manager 200 Rogers Road Ext Kittery, ME 03904 Mike Perro Board of Selectman PO Box 26 Shapleigh ME 04076-0026
Greg Tansley City Planner PO Box 586 Biddeford, ME 04005 Richard Dutremble County Commissioner 45 Kennebunk Road Alfred, ME 04002 Patricia Finnigan Town Manager 23 School Street, PO Box 875 Ogunquit, ME 03907
Judy Bernstein Town Planner 1 Summer Street Kennebunk, ME 04043-1897 Bill Mann Economic Development Director 300 Main Street Saco, ME 04072
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