GORHAM – Residents of a Gorham neighborhood once plagued by partying college students now fear plans to raze two homes to add downtown parking would bring more noise.

The Gorham Town Council voted unanimously Tuesday to buy two homes, one at 21 Main St. for $169,900, and another at 10 Preble St. for $239,900. The rear of the two properties are not contiguous.

Gorham municipal leaders for years have looked at an opportunity for more parking,

“We want to make the village a better place,” Town Councilor Michael Phinney said.

The town is spending more than $400,000 for the two acquisitions before demolition or construction.

The council took action after discussing the matter in executive session.

“I received no notification about this,” Kathy Kigin, of 12 Preble St., said before the vote. She said she learned about it through neighborhood rumors and was among several neighbors attending the meeting.

Preble Street residents are concerned about traffic, noise and devaluation of homes.

“We are residential,” Kigin said. “It’s a one-block street.”

Many students at the University of Southern Maine reside downtown, and Preble Street became notorious for its fraternity and sorority bashes. Preble Street was previously nicknamed Party Street by some party-goers.

During a crackdown on rowdy behavior in 2010, the town seized one rundown, Preble Street house owned by a college fraternity that owed back taxes.

“Preble Street has endured a lot of mismanagement,” said Keith Lynds, 7 Preble St., who asked that neighbors be included in future plans for the sites. “We don’t want to be ignored.”

Town Councilor Matthew Robinson said the proposed new lots would not be designed for overflow parking for parties.

“I don’t want it to be a fraternity and sorority parking lot,” Robinson said.

Buying the two properties moves the town closer to fulfilling a long-recognized need to ease a downtown parking shortage. In the past, paving the green area at the corner of South and Preble streets, which is the former high school lot next to Robie Gym, for parking hadn’t received support, Town Manager David Cole said.

“It gives the Town Council options that are not available now,” Cole said following Tuesday’s meeting.

Parking plans have yet to be developed for the two properties.

Planning Board approval would be required to transform the lots into parking. Phinney said abutters would be notified and that the public would have opportunities to comment.

Kigin, who lives in the urban residential district, asked whether a parking lot would be allowed under zoning.

“It’s a question that needs to be looked at,” Cole said.

Erin Irish, who lives at 13 Preble St., raised questions Wednesday about what businesses the parking would serve and what the construction costs would be. Irish was surprised that the council would authorize buying the properties without knowing costs of development and without approval for the project.

“It’s a misappropriation of funds,” said Irish. “It’s very ill-conceived.”

If construction costs exceed $250,000, voter approval would be required in a referendum.

Responding to a question from Ryan Irish, Cole said the house on Main Street would be demolished fairly quickly. But the Preble Street house could stand for a while.

The home at 21 Main St. is on a .11-acre site, according to tax records. The seven-room home, built in 1827, has an assessed tax value of $138,300.

At 10 Preble St., the town has an assessed tax value of $238,000 for the 12-room home built in 1900 and its one-third of an acre lot.

This Gorham home at 10 Preble St. and another at 21 Main St., could be razed to make room for downtown parking, following action at the Gorham Town Council meeting Tuesday. (Staff photo by Robert Lowell)