TOPSHAM — Controversial plans for a parking lot off Thomas Avenue will again come before Topsham’s planning board tonight.
The lot would provide parking for the Hillside athletic field, which now only has parking on Foreside Road, and is difficult to access for those with disabilities.
The town found room for parking after clearing away dead trees on a pathway off Thomas Avenue last winter as part of its forestry plan.
Parks and Recreation Director Pam LeDuc in December 2018 said the field is needed because of growing interest in baseball and softball.
There is also a shortage of athletic fields as Mt. Ararat High School sports teams were prevented from using most of the school’s sports fields due to construction.
The planning board approved a 20-space gravel parking lot in July 2018 for Hillside Field. However, the decision was appealed by Karen Murphy, a resident representing the Arbor Avenue subdivision. The zoning board of appeals granted the appeal, finding that the town’s ownership of the access way between the proposed parking lot and field was unclear.
However, voters at the May town meeting agreed to accept the right-of-way off Thomas Avenue as a town-owned way.
Voters also approved $65,000 for recreation facility improvements — either to build a parking lot off of Thomas Avenue or to improve the path to the upper field from the Foreside Road parking lot.
Arbor Avenue neighbors argued the parking lot could increase traffic, lower property values and even increase crime.
J.P. Ouellette of Merrymeeting Drive argued children will be at risk due to increased traffic in the neighborhood, “and the potential for unwanted unknowns lurking in our neighborhood.”
In a Sept. 25 letter to the planning board, town attorney Mary Costigan with Bernstein, Shur asks the planning board to confirm the town’s right to the trail between the field and proposed parking lot, and to re-issue approval for the project.
A public hearing on the proposed parking lot is scheduled tonight during the 7 p.m. planning board meeting at the town office.
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