The performance standards in this article are intended to clarify and expand upon the criteria for approval found within the Subdivision Statute (30-A M.R.S.A. § 4404). In reviewing a proposed subdivision, the Board shall review the application for conformance with the following performance standards and make findings that each has been met prior to the approval of a final plan. Compliance with the design guidelines of Article
XII shall be considered to be evidence of meeting the appropriate performance standards. Proposed subdivisions not in compliance with the design guidelines of Article
XII may be considered, but the applicant shall provide clear and convincing evidence that the proposed design will meet the performance standard(s) and the statutory criteria. In all instances the burden of proof shall be upon the applicant to present adequate information to indicate all performance standards and statutory criteria for approval have been or will be met.
[Amended 3-9-2007 ATM by Art. 26]
A. Water supply.
(1) Any subdivision located in the Center Village, Village, or Village Growth District shall, at the expense of the applicant, make provisions for connection to the public water system. A waiver may be requested, pursuant to §
148-68.
[Amended 3-8-2008 ATM by Art. 24]
(2) When a subdivision is to be served by a public water
system, the complete supply system within the subdivision, including
fire hydrants, shall be installed at the expense of the applicant.
The size and location of mains, gate valves, hydrants, and service
connections shall be reviewed and approved in writing by the servicing
water company or district and the Fire Chief.
(3) When a proposed subdivision is outside of the Center
Village, Village, or Village Growth Districts, water supply shall
be from individual wells or a private community water system.
(a)
Individual wells shall be sited and constructed
to prevent infiltration of surface water, and contamination from subsurface
wastewater disposal systems and other sources of potential contamination.
(b)
Lot design shall permit placement of wells,
subsurface wastewater disposal areas, and reserve sites for subsurface
water disposal areas in compliance with the Maine Subsurface Wastewater
Disposal Rules.
(c)
If a central water supply system is provided
by the subdivider, the location and protection of the source, the
design, construction and operation of the system shall conform to
the standards of the Maine Rules Relating to Drinking Water (10-144A
C.M.R. 231).
(d)
In areas not served by pressurized hydrants
for fire-fighting purposes, the subdivider shall provide adequate
water storage facilities. Facilities may be ponds with dry hydrants,
underground storage reservoirs, provision of private, automatic sprinkler
systems with storage tanks, or other methods acceptable to the Fire
Chief. An easement shall be granted to the municipality granting access
to and maintenance of dry hydrants or reservoirs where necessary.
The Board may waive the requirement for in-ground water storage or
provision of automatic sprinkler systems, only upon submittal of evidence
that their construction or installation is not feasible, and the Fire
Chief has indicated in writing that alternate methods of fire protection
are available.
B. Water quality. Water supplies shall meet the primary
drinking water standards contained in the Maine Rules Relating to
Drinking Water. If existing water quality contains contaminants in
excess of the secondary drinking water standards in the Maine Rules
Relating to Drinking Water, that fact shall be disclosed in a note
on the plan to be recorded in the Registry of Deeds.
[Amended 3-9-2007 ATM by Art. 26]
In meeting the standards of §
148-31A, a proposed subdivision shall not generate a demand on the source, treatment facilities or distribution system of the servicing water company or district beyond the capacity of those system components, considering improvements that are planned to be in place prior to occupancy of the subdivision. The applicant shall be responsible for paying the costs of any system improvements necessary to serve the proposed subdivision.
[Amended 3-9-2007 ATM by Art. 27]
A. In general, provision shall be made for vehicular
access to the subdivision and circulation within the subdivision in
such a manner as to:
(1) Safeguard against hazards to traffic and pedestrians
in existing streets and within the subdivision;
(2) Avoid traffic congestion on any street; and
(3) Provide safe and convenient circulation on off-site
public streets and within the subdivision.
B. More specifically, access and circulation shall also
conform to the following standards:
(1) The vehicular access to the subdivision shall be arranged
to avoid traffic use of existing streets which the Comprehensive Plan
has classified as residential access streets.
(2) The street giving access to the subdivision and off-site,
neighboring streets and intersections which can be expected to carry
traffic to and from the subdivision shall have adequate traffic-carrying
capacity according to the traffic impact analysis submitted by the
applicant, or be suitably improved, according to the following criteria,
so the proposed subdivision does not result in unreasonable congestion
or unsafe conditions:
(a)
In the traffic impact analysis, the applicant's
engineer shall determine existing traffic flows and the existing capacity
and level of service on the off-site neighboring streets and intersections.
The post-development traffic expected to be generated by the proposed
project shall then be modeled.
(b)
The Planning Board shall require all off-site
traffic improvements necessitated by an increase in traffic attributed
to the proposed subdivision to be made by the applicant.
[Amended 3-8-2008 ATM by Art. 27]
(c)
The applicant shall submit preliminary cost
estimates and designs for such improvements prepared by a professional
engineer, as well as authorization from any parties-in-interest to
improve the off-site streets or intersections, before preliminary
plan approval may be granted.
(d)
Should the Planning Board determine that immediate construction of required off-site traffic improvements is not necessary, deferred construction may be permitted if it is assured by a performance guarantee, as set forth in Article
XIII. A payment of a fee in lieu of an actual improvement is not authorized by this subsection.
(3) No subdivision shall be created, accessed by an existing
off-site street or intersection at Level of Service E or below, nor
shall any proposed subdivision reduce an off-site street or intersection's
level of service (LOS) to E or below, unless the Comprehensive Plan
has indicated that Level of Service E or F are acceptable for that
street or intersection. Should a traffic impact analysis indicate
that such conditions of LOS E or below exist now or will occur if
a proposed subdivision is created, the Planning Board shall require
the applicant to improve the off-site street or intersection to up
to LOS D, after including the traffic to be added by the proposed
subdivision in the analysis.
(4) Where necessary to safeguard against hazards to traffic
and pedestrians and/or to avoid traffic congestion, provision shall
be made for turning lanes, traffic directional islands, frontage roads,
sidewalks, bicycleways and traffic controls within existing public
streets.
(5) Accessways to nonresidential subdivisions or to multifamily
developments shall be designed to avoid queuing of entering vehicles
on any street. Left-lane storage capacity shall be provided to meet
anticipated demand. A warrant analysis to determine the need for a
left-turn storage lane shall be done.
(6) Where topographic and other site conditions allow,
provision shall be made for street connections to adjoining lots of
similar existing or potential use within areas of the municipality
designated as growth areas in the Comprehensive Plan, or in nonresidential
subdivisions when such access will:
(a)
Facilitate fire protection services as approved
by the Fire Chief; or
(b)
Enable the public to travel between two existing
or potential uses, generally open to the public, without need to travel
upon a public street.
(7) Street names, signs and lighting. Streets which join
and are in alignment with streets of abutting or neighboring properties
shall bear the same name. Names of new streets shall not duplicate,
or bear phonetic resemblance to the names of existing streets within
the municipality, and shall be subject to the approval of the Board.
No street name shall be the common given name of a person. The developer
shall reimburse the municipality for the costs of installing street
name, traffic safety and control signs. Streetlighting shall be installed
as approved by the Board.
(8) Cleanup. Following street construction, the developer
or contractor shall conduct a thorough clean up of stumps and other
debris from the entire street right-of-way. If on-site disposal of
the stumps and debris is proposed, the site shall be indicated on
the plan, and be suitably covered with fill and topsoil, limed, fertilized,
and seeded.
The applicant shall submit evidence of site
suitability for subsurface sewage disposal prepared by a Maine licensed
site evaluator in full compliance with the requirements of the State
of Maine Subsurface Wastewater Disposal Rules.
A. The site evaluator shall certify, in writing, that
all test pits which meet the requirements for a new system represent
an area large enough to install a disposal area on soils which meet
the disposal rules.
B. On lots in which the limiting factor has been identified
as being within 24 inches of the surface, a second site with suitable
soils shall be shown as a reserve area for future replacement of the
disposal area. The reserve area shall be shown on the plan and restricted
so as not to be built upon.
C. In no instance shall a disposal area be on a site
which requires a new system variance from the Subsurface Wastewater
Disposal Rules.
If the additional solid waste from the proposed
subdivision exceeds the capacity of the municipal solid waste facility,
causes the municipal facility to no longer be in compliance with its
license from the Department of Environmental Protection, or causes
the municipality to exceed its contract with a nonmunicipal facility,
the applicant shall make alternate arrangements for the disposal of
solid waste. The alternate arrangements shall be at a disposal facility
which is in compliance with its license. The Board may not require
the alternate arrangement to exceed a period of five years.
All lots shall meet the minimum dimensional
requirements of the Zoning Ordinance for the zoning district in which they are located. The
proposed subdivision shall meet all applicable performance standards
or design criteria from the Zoning Ordinance.
When any part of a subdivision is located in
a special flood hazard area as identified by the Federal Emergency
Management Agency on the Alfred Flood Insurance Rate Map, May 18,
1998:
A. All public utilities and facilities, such as sewer,
gas, electrical and water systems shall be located and constructed
to minimize or eliminate flood damages.
B. Adequate drainage shall be provided so as to reduce
exposure to flood hazards.
C. The plan shall include a statement that structures
in the subdivision shall be constructed with their lowest floor, including
the basement, at least one foot above the one-hundred-year flood elevation.
Such a restriction shall be included in any deed, lease, purchase
and sale agreement, or document transferring or expressing an intent
to transfer any interest in real estate or structure, including but
not limited to a time-share interest. The statement shall clearly
articulate that the municipality may enforce any violation of the
construction requirement and that fact shall also be included in the
deed or any other document previously described. The construction
requirement shall also be clearly stated on the plan.
Freshwater wetlands shall be identified in accordance
with the Federal Manual for Identifying and Delineating Jurisdictional
Wetlands, published by the Federal Interagency Committee for Wetland
Delineation, January, 1989.
[Amended 10-9-2007 STM by Art. 5; 3-31-2012 ATM by Art. 22]
A. Design of stormwater management facilities to handle runoff from
streets and sidewalks shall use the following design techniques and
best management practices:
(1) For subdivisions that require a DEP review under the Site Location
of Development Act (SLDA), a stormwater management plan shall be submitted
which complies with the SLDA permit and the requirements of DEP Chapter
500 Stormwater Regulations.
(2) For subdivisions that do not require a SLDA permit, but require a
DEP permit under the Stormwater Law, a stormwater management plan
shall be submitted which complies with the requirements of DEP Chapter
500 Stormwater Regulations.
(3) For subdivisions outside of the watershed of a great pond, that neither
require a SLDA permit, nor a DEP permit under the Stormwater Law,
a stormwater management plan shall be submitted which incorporates
low impact development techniques on each individual lot, as described
in Volume I of the Maine Stormwater Best Management Practices Manual,
2006.
(4) For subdivisions within the watershed of a great pond, that neither
require a SLDA permit, nor a DEP permit under the Stormwater Law,
that contain:
(a)
Five or more lots or dwelling units created within any five-year
period; or
(b)
Any combination of 800 linear feet of new or upgraded driveways
and/or streets;
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a stormwater management plan shall be submitted that meets the
phosphorus allocation across the entire subdivision in accordance
with the methodology described in the DEP Phosphorus Design Manual,
Volume II of the Maine Stormwater Best Management Practices Manual,
2006.
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B. The Planning Board may require a hydrologic analysis for any site
in areas with a history of flooding or in areas with a potential for
future flooding, associated with cumulative impacts of development.
This hydrologic analysis would be in the form of a "Downstream Analysis"
under conditions of the ten-year, twenty-four-hour storm and the twenty-five-year,
twenty-four-hour storm, and the one-hundred-year, twenty-four-hour
storm, as described below:
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Downstream Analysis Methodology
The criteria used for the downstream analysis is referred to
as the "10% rule." Under the 10% rule, a hydrologic and hydraulic
analysis for the ten-year, twenty-four-hour storm and the twenty-five-year,
twenty-four-hour storm, and the one-hundred-year, twenty-four-hour
storm is extended downstream to the point where the site represents
10% of the total drainage area. For example, a ten-acre site would
be analyzed to the point downstream with a drainage area of 100 acres.
This analysis should compute flow rates and velocities downstream
to the location of the 10% rule for present conditions and proposed
conditions. If the flow rates and velocities increase by more than
5% and/or if any existing downstream structures are impacted, the
designer should redesign and incorporate detention facilities.
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[Added 3-8-2002 ATM by Art. 7]
A. Any subdivision with 24 or more lots shall be divided
into two or more construction phases. In no event shall any phase
allow the construction of or offering for sale or lease of more than
20 lots or dwelling units in any one-year period.
B. The applicant shall obtain and submit letters from
the Alfred Public Works Department, the Alfred Fire Department, Maine
School Administrative District No. 57, and the Alfred Water District
if the subdivision will be served by public water, indicating that
either of the following conditions are met:
(1) There are adequate existing facilities to provide
services to all phases of the proposed subdivision; or
(2) If current facilities are not adequate to service
all phases of the subdivision, the department or agency shall make
a finding that construction of the project according to the proposed
phasing plan shall not create an undue adverse impact on the provision
of services by the department or agency. In the making of its findings,
the department or agency shall consider the following:
(a)
Any capital improvements plans or any other
planned, budgeted or funded capital or operating improvements; and
(b)
Any fees or infrastructure to be paid for or
constructed by the applicant; and
(c)
Expected increases in revenue from new taxes
or fees generated by the development of the proposed subdivision;
and
(d)
The existence of' any other previously approved
unbuilt subdivisions expected to be developed during the construction
of the proposed subdivision.