Q&A with Jennie Franceschi

Jennie Franceschi, who officially begins her role as Westbrook’s director of Planning & Code Enforcement next week, joins the city during one of its busiest periods of development. She replaces Molly Just, who recently resigned after nearly eight years.

However, she is welcoming the workload, and as a Westbrook resident she says she is invested in making sure the city’s significant projects are thoroughly vetted. At the top of her list is the high-profile Dirigo Plaza shopping center slated for the Pike Industries gravel pit off Main Street.

Franceschi, 42, says she’s comfortable in mill towns. She grew up in Winslow, worked in Biddeford for 14 years, and settled in Westbrook 15 years ago. She graduated from the University of Maine in 1996 with a bachelor’s in civil engineering, and worked as a planning engineer in Biddeford during an economic turnaround for the city. Franceschi’s starting salary will be $61,992.

Prior to her hiring in Westbrook, she worked for the Cumberland County Soil & Water Conservation District. The American Journal spoke with Franceschi this week about her role as city planner and what’s in the pipeline for development in the city.

Q: You seem to have hit the ground running in Westbrook. Was it a surprise to come on board during such a busy time for development?

A: The state of Westbrook in an economic upturn is a familiar place to be in coming from Biddeford, where, when I started working for them 14 years ago as their planning engineer, we had 22-item Planning Board agendas. It was a bit surreal to come in right as Dirigo Plaza (with a half-million square feet of retail development) is heading into the Planning Board review phase, but having been through a similar project in my previous municipal employment, it does help me with process coordination.

Q: Do you think being a resident of Westbrook has an impact on how you approach planning projects?

A: I feel very invested in Westbrook, being a resident here for 15 years and involved in many community organizations. I do, however, approach the work of the Planning Office no different from when I worked for Biddeford. I treated Biddeford as if it were my home and the decisions and direction that the Planning Office provided was based from that perspective. I expect that perspective to be the same here, but it just happens that I actually do live here.

Q: Tell me about your work at the Cumberland County Soil and Water Conservation District. What kind of projects did you work on?

A: I was fortunate to be a part of the Long Creek Watershed Management work that is under construction around the Maine Mall area and extending into Westbrook. The Long Creek Management District is tasked with improving the water quality in Long Creek and its tributaries, which includes Blanchette Brook in Westbrook. I assisted in inspections of construction projects, Department of Environmental Protection permit reviews and coordination of maintenance of the treatment systems that are all around the Maine Mall area, which are assisting in cleaning stormwater before it enters Long Creek. Most residents may not be aware, but Long Creek has many of its treatment systems in the Thomas Drive area of Westbrook.

Q: How does that work relate to the role of city planner?

A: Having been a part of the Long Creek team in my work at the Conservation District, I feel I can bring that knowledge into the project reviews process not just in the Long Creek Watershed but throughout the city. I also feel I can assist projects with my experience with the DEP permitting process. As Biddeford’s planning engineer for 14 years prior to my employment with the Conservation District, I feel I have a very good handle on the planning process and further during times when there was transition in the position of city planner, I filled in as interim city planner. I was fortunate to have been part of a team that allowed me to participate in a wide variety of municipal efforts.

Q: What would you say is the most difficult part of working in a planning department?

A: There is always a balancing act between different interests as a project moves through the planning process. Every project is unique in what those balancing points are. Ultimately, it is my role to guide applicants on what our ordinance requires and then to provide the board with the facts to deliberate and make their decisions by. More often than not, we find ways to balance the interests so that all can come away from the process feeling good about the outcome.

Q: What are the most significant development projects occuring right now? What is on the horizon for Westbrook?

A: The largest project in the review process right now is the Dirigo Plaza, which is the redevelopment of the Pike parcel on Larrabee Road and Main Street. This project will change the face of Westbrook, as it is the gateway for people entering Westbrook from Portland. Additionally, we have many smaller-scale expansions and redevelopments in our Gateway Commercial & Manufacturing districts, such as an expansion of Bill Dodge on Saunders Way. Although these projects may be small in comparison, it shows the economic upturn we are seeing all over the city, like along Main Street. We have been seeing Main Street buildings investing in upgrading their facades and I would be remiss not to mention the new development of ConvenientMD on the vacant lot at the gateway to Main Street. The surge of new residential development all across the community is a clear indicator that Westbrook is where people want to be. I knew this 15 years ago when my husband and I landed here, but I now feel very fortunate to be in this position at this time in Westbrook.

Jennie Franceschi, the new director of planning and code enforcement in Westbrook, lists residential development, the Dirigo Plaza shopping center, and the development of the former Maine Rubber property on Main Street as the most significant projects currently under way.