A month after learning the town cannot build a community center on the 8 acres it had purchased for $325,000, members of the town council debated at Tuesday’s meeting if they should find a new location or scrap the project.

The Standish Town Council ended up rejecting a proposal to build the community center behind the municipal offices in a 6 to 1 vote, with councilor Margaret Spencer in the minority.

The Army Corps of Engineers told the town during an Oct. 5 site walk that a large development could not be built at the location near the intersection of Route 35 and Moody Road because the property contained large vernal pools, which are hollows that fill with water in the spring and dry within the year. These temporary bodies of water can be habitats for salamanders, turtles and frogs.

Councilor Philip Pomerleau said it’s too early to assume the town will lose any money from the land purchase.

“We are going to sell this property,” he said. “The property may fetch more, and there may be a profit.”

Linda Brooks, director of the Standish Recreation Department, said the property, which also contains larger wetlands, probably can’t be used for a large building because of environmental setbacks.

“They have not said ‘no, you cannot do this,'” said Brooks. She said the town could spend more time trying to find a way to fit the project onto the land. But while a large-scale project may be out, Brooks said the property could be used as a housing lot.

Ron Richardson, a concerned resident of Whites Bridge Road who spoke at Tuesday’s meeting, said he’s not convinced the town can profit from the land.

“If the land has been limited to a certain amount of uses, that’s going to depreciate the value,” said Richardson. “Chances are not very good that there will be a profit.”

The big question

“I want to know why this research wasn’t done before the purchase of the land,” Richardson said at the podium before the town council.

Town council chairman Louis Stack said that “someone dropped the ball,” meaning the community center committee should have known before the purchase of the land.

Brooks said that the community center committee, which consists of her, town council members Wayne Newbegin and Margaret Spencer and eight Standish residents, submitted the proposal to purchase the land before the town council on Nov. 17, 2005 where it was decided a citizen referendum would be needed to purchase the land in June 2006.

Vernal pools, according to Brooks, were not an issue for developments until the Army Corps of Engineers starting suggesting to the Maine Department of Environmental Protection that they should be protected. The Maine Legislature last year then approved a law protecting vernals pools. But Brooks said the amount of wetlands on the property is minimal.

“Its not so much the wetland issue, it’s the vernal pools that were the deal breaker,” Brooks said. She added that they cannot be detected in the winter because of snow.

Brooks said that the town entered into a contract with an architect in November 2006 and it took until last month to have the land inspected by the Army Corps of Engineers and the Department of Environmental Protection for the land that was purchased in June 2006.

“At the time we entered into the contract, vernal pools were not an issue,” said Town Manager Gordon Billington.

What now?

The 8-acre parcel was the third location the community center committee had looked at when contemplating a land purchase. The fourth location behind the municipal offices on Route 35 was rejected because of worries over traffic problems. Now, several councilors are saying they don’t want the project to continue.

“I’m against spending any more money on this project,” said councilor Jeffrey Burgess, who expressed frustration that Standish taxpayers will be stuck with a large bill that could have been avoided with proper planning.

“There’s nothing in this project we don’t already have two of in this town,” said Stack. He said he has opposed the community center since it was first proposed.

After a telephone and Internet survey of 450 Standish residents in June 2003 reported that 92 percent of responders wanted a community center, the town council approved a proposal in April of 2004 to construct one. The community center committee was formed and spoke with the Standish Kiwanis Club about accepting a land donation of about 7 acres, in exchange for which the town would build a second access road from Route 25 to the Kiwanis beach on Watchic Lake.

“One of the best assets of that property was the proximity to the beach,” said Brooks. She said the land was turned down because they would lose road access if the Kiwanis Club ever sold its remaining property.

In September 2005 the town looked at some land adjacent to the town hall and conducted some appraisals and surveys, but the land owners changed their mind and said the property was not for sale.

The 8 acres that were eventually purchased was the third location the community center committee had looked at.

“I still have hopes for it, but I don’t know,” said Spencer. She said she doesn’t know if there’s still enough support for the community center.

“I’m still in favor of a community center for the town of Standish,” said Paul Mosley. He joined the community center committee in the beginning when he was a member of the planning board, and stayed on in a resident position.

“We’re in the 21st century,” said Mosley. “I think a community center for the town could and would be used for a great extent and to the benefit for all the citizens of the town.”

Besides sports, Mosley said the community center could host meetings, large gatherings, family parties and provide a place for citizens to vote.

“We need to hear from the townspeople to see if this is something they still want us to go ahead with it,” said Brooks.