TOPSHAM

Adoption of a brand new sign ordinance at the May 16 town meeting led to the town’s codes enforcement officer sending letters to 52 business owners notifying them their temporary or moveable signs needed to be removed by July 15 to comply with the revised ordinance.

Now, that sign ordinance will be the subject of a workshop at the Planning Board meeting tonight following its regular agenda.

Town Planner Rich Roedner said John Larson, who owns the former Village Candle building in the Topsham Fair Mall with brothers Kevin and Paul Kelly, and the smaller mall stores between that building and Hannaford with his wife, June, sent the town a written request to get clarification of the ordinance requirements because the new ordinance applies to a real estate banner within the mall.

This request was the reason a workshop on the sign ordinance regarding the mixed use commercial (MUC) district, where the mall is located, was placed on the agenda.

Roedner said since Larson’s request, there have been a fair number of other individuals expressing various concerns over the code as adopted, “and what we’ve told them is, we’ll put it on the agenda under a broad heading, and show up and the board will be willing to listen to the concerns and they’ll decide where they’re going from there.”

Roedner said he expects Larson will have the floor first since he submitted the initial request, to talk about his concerns, and that the board will then ask if there is anyone else with issues related to the sign code.

Bob Lemont, post commander for Topsham’s American Legion Post 202, said in early July that the legion had received a letter from Tom Lister, Topsham’s codes enforcement officer, in early June, notifying the legion that it must remove a temporary and portable sign out front displaying post special events and Friday night dinner information, no later than July 15. He said Monday that the legion had moved the sign and is in conformance.

According to a copy of the letter Post 202 received, the Planning Board held 22 public workshops on signs that were all advertised and agendas emailed to 115 people who had asked to be notified. These meetings produced a sign code in alignment with the comprehensive plan and Main Street plan. One of the major changes is the prohibition of temporary signs “with the exception of sandwich board signs located in LV, MV, MUC and MUC-1 zoning districts and a rewrite of the non-conformance section to provide for long-term elimination of non-conforming signs.

“You have received this letter because you are the listed owner of property where temporary, portable or moveable signs are located,” the letter continues.

Lemont said after he received the notice in early June, he went to see the codes enforcement officer, Tom Lister, who Lemont said told him 52 letters like the one he received went out. He reached out to many of those businesses, firms and organizations and stated in July, “none of them had been notified about these changes in advance. Many of us are dependent on such signs.”

Lemont started a petition — he said it is still circulating as of Monday — for the Board of Selectmen to revisit and change the sign code. He said he hopes many others impacted by the sign ordinance will be in attendance tonight, and emphasized he will only move forward with the petition if a resolution can’t be achieved as a result of tonight’s workshop.

In the meantime, Lemont estimated those circulating the petition sheets have close to 200 if not more signatures, and he will continue to gather signatures until he has the 459 signatures needed in order for the town clerk to certify it and forward it to the selectmen.

“I’m hoping that we can work something out tomorrow night,” Lemont said Monday.

The planning board worked several months before the May 16 town meeting on a comprehensive rewrite of the town’s entire sign ordinance in an effort to improve definitions; improve language for sign review; differentiate what kinds of signs will be allowed in the different zones in town and make the ordinance easier to use.

Other business

Before the Planning Board meeting begins, board members will conduct a site walk at 357 Middlesex Road at 5:30 p.m. and during the meeting, will consider the site plan and conditional use application submitted by Kirt and Kim Weaver for a disc golf course at the property.

The board will also consider a proposed amended site plan submitted by Priority Group LLC for the neighborhood grocery store at 38 Middlesex Road. The applicant plans to have four fuel pumps beneath a canopy as approved by the Planning Board already, but seeks approval to lay them out differently so the pumps can’t be blocked should, for example, a vehicle hauling a trailer pull up to a pump.