Hampden identifies areas for growth Town updating comprehensive plan

HAMPDEN – With the town’s comprehensive plan update under way, officials are identifying sections best suited for business growth.

They have identified the section of Coldbrook Road between U.S. Route 202 and Interstate 95 as the town’s “most logical” area for future development.

Once the comprehensive plan is completed, which may take between one and two years, some sections of town may need to be rezoned to fit the town’s strategy.

“We need to create as many opportunities for new businesses to come to Hampden as possible,” said Bion Foster, the town’s economic development director. “And we need to give the businesses that are here already the opportunity to grow.”

There are 215 businesses in town, and nearly 80 percent of them employ five or fewer people, Foster said.

While the town has invested $3.1 million in its Business and Commerce Park on Route 202, most companies in town do not require the space or facilities that park offers, Foster said.

The first phase of the park contains 19 lots, 12 of which are still unsold. When the town decides to construct the second phase, it will open up 17 larger lots which have fewer architectural restrictions and would allow, for example, flat-roofed buildings, Foster said.

Since the early 1990s, the town has grown nearly two times as rapidly as anticipated, Foster said. As a result, the Town Council, planning board, economic and development committee, and Hampden Business Association have met in hopes of identifying business-friendly areas.

In addition to Coldbrook Road, Main Road North, the waterfront near the marina, and areas commonly referred to as the Four-Mile Square and the Triangle have been targeted for development. The Four-Mile Square is the portion of land outlined by Main Road, Western Avenue, Mayo Road and Kennebec Road.

This piece of land has been “grossly underused” for years, and is a proposed site for the new Hampden Academy, Foster said.

“Hampden Academy would be the impetus that would make that development occur,” Foster said.

In order to use the Four-Mile Square parcel, an access road would need to be constructed, which would open up the campus environment.

As the Pine Tree Landfill prepares to close, officials hope to develop the Triangle, a section of land framed by Route 202, Coldbrook Road and Interstate 95.

Development includes preserving green space, creating parks and recreational facilities, as well as promoting business growth, said Town Manager Susan Lessard.

“Development is more than bringing in business, it’s making sure the community you wind up with is the community you want,” Lessard said.