Marsh and Mall Planning

Perhaps as important as the recommendations from a task force on the Penjajawoc Marsh is the fact that the suggestions were made at all. After years of acrimony, it is remarkable and helpful that landowners, developers and conservation proponents have come up with a comprehensive plan for the mall and marsh area.

The plan was presented to Bangor city councilors this week and they will consider its adoption next week. Acceptance of the plan will allow both development and conservation in the marsh area. This is a major step forward.

Last year, the council created the task force to bridge the gap between landowners and conservation activists and to develop guidelines for future development and land preservation in the area. The task force included landowners, developers, city officials and conservation group representatives.

In the past, projects in the vicinity of the Bangor Mall and Penjajawoc Marsh were considered largely on a case-by-case basis without regard to larger preservation and development goals. To remedy this, the task force focused on three areas: land use, transportation, public access to and management of the marsh as a recreation and wildlife area. Recommendations are meant to be viewed as a whole package, not in isolation. That, however, should not mean that specific recommendations can’t be refined in future years as circumstances warrant.

On the land use front, the task force recommends limiting development to specific areas to the south of the marsh. It also calls for larger setbacks from the marsh for both commercial and residential development.

The task force recommends that a conservation fund be established by setting aside for 10 years 25 percent of new taxes from new development in the area. The money would be used to purchase property or conservation easements around the marsh. Public access should be included whenever possible. This is an innovative way to use money gained from new projects to protect the marsh as a wildlife habitat and recreational resource.

The recommendations for traffic flow improvements will help ease congestion in the area, a problem that will only increase if more stores and houses are built in the area. A major recommendation is to widen Stillwater Avenue to five lanes while trying to reduce the number of driveways off this major thoroughfare. This will benefit existing businesses by making it easier to navigate the often congested area around the mall.

If new residential subdivisions are built in the area, the group has suggested that they be connected by streets and-or bicycle and walking paths. This is a good idea that should be applied elsewhere as well.

Regarding public access, the group recommends that the city work to connect the Essex Street Recreation Area to the City Forest by securing public rights of way. Creating a recreational corridor would increase the public use of this land.

Many of the group’s recommendations will take years to fulfill, but its work to find common ground is a great beginning. Guided by its report, city officials, developers and others can now make better decisions about enhancing the mall and marsh area to the benefit of both commerce and conservation.