Neighbors opposing a proposed housing development in Cape Elizabeth are saying the town is underhandedly trying to change rules in favor of the proposed development.

The Spurwink Woods subdivision proposal does not adhere to existing development rules said Cape Elizabeth resident Richard Bryant, a lawyer, and member of Neighbors for Sensible Development, an organization opposing the subdivision.

The Spurwink Woods subdivision is a proposed 42-unit development on 26 acres located between Spurwink Avenue and Mitchell Road. The neighbors are primarily opposing the creation of what they describe as a short-cut road, linking Dermot Drive and Killdeer Road, which are currently dead-end roads.

The current rule states that if a road is built through a parcel of land, bisecting the lot, that bisected lot must remain a certain size on one side of the road or the other. The Spurwink Woods plan proposes building a road through a condominium lot without adhering to the rule. The proposed rule, if passed, would only apply to single-family unit lots, excluding the condominium lot on the Spurwink Woods plan.

Bryant and others are troubled that a rule change was recommended at last month’s planning board meeting without any reference to its connection to the Spurwink Woods proposal. He was also concerned that the rule violation was never mentioned.

“It presents an appearance that the process is not as open and transparent as it ought to be,” said Bryant.

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Neighbor for Sensible Development, Hank Andolsek, said the rule change was proposed at last month’s planning board meeting following the Spurwink Woods public hearing. He suggested it was intentionally placed after the hearing concluded. “It’s disturbing because they did it after everybody left,” he said.

The planning board is tailoring the rules to fit the development, he said. The recommended rule change was forwarded to the town council which has referred it to the zoning board. The zoning board will make a recommendation back to the town council, which will then take a vote.

Though the citizen action group is working towards halting the proposal with their own rule change, Andolsek said it’s difficult when it seems as though the town is supporting the development. “It’s this feeling of helplessness; there’s no advocate for citizens,” he said.

The neighbors have drafted a petition to create a new rule that would prohibit connecting dead-end streets. They’ve collected at least 767 signatures, 10 percent of registered voters, to present it to the town for approval. Bryant, who drafted the petition, said the group hasn’t decided when they’ll submit it. Once submitted and approved, it will go to the town council, which will either adopt it or send it to a referendum vote.

Neighbors say the increased traffic from the shortcut street will dramatically change their lifestyle. The developers, Spurwink Woods, LLC, say the traffic studies they’ve conducted don’t support that theory.

Town planner Maureen O’Meara has said in the past that neighborhood connectivity is the direction the town is moving. The adoption of the petition’s rule change would be a step backward, she said.