1 - Traffic
Traffic was known as a serious problem right from the start. The Planning Director also quantified and identified what might not have a solution to more traffic at the foot of Sopos' bridge as well as all the other limitations of Broadway and it's intersections. However the issue of traffic due to the addition to residential in the Eastern Warefront was glossed over at that comp plan meeting by everyone.
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Cushings Point Transportation Study can be found at this link. Go to pg. 42
"Limited opportunities for capacity expansion" for Broadway/Waterman Drive Intersection
https://www.southportland.gov/244/Adopted-Plans
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SMART Corridor Plan
It's not just one intersection!
To see 4.6 go to page 99 in the SMART Corridor Plan
To see "Persistent congestion..." go to pg 4 in the Cushings Point Transportation Study
Both can be found here
https://www.southportland.gov/244/Adopted-Plans
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Planning director says "It can hard for the community to understand the significance when we propose change at every single intersection"....." If there is a need to blow up the engagement piece we need to put enough resources behind us to do that right"
NOTE: "ENGAGEMENT", a term used by planning when reaching out to the public to find out what their wishes are, like questionnaires. His words "blow up" meaning I'll leave to the reader.
https://www.southportland.gov/244/Adopted-Plans
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I was on the Portland side of the Bridge as it was up. After the bridge went down and I finally made my way down to the Sopo end of the bridge and this is what I saw. With the documented limitations of expansion of this intersection what will happen when we and Cape Elizabeth have all that growth on this end of the city.
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HOW MANY CARS WE TALKING ABOUT?
The bridge was 32,000 + a day. Also noted a study by SEWALL for PK Realty when they had their Yard South pre-application had been submitted. This is just to give folks a "feel" of the impact that property can have on the city. That property is currently at Growth Level 4. The truth is in the language of the #4 description. It allows "well beyond the typical scale of development" "also a need for expanded infrastructure capacity"
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2 - Oil Tank Farms & Emissions
The illustration depicts how close a 6 story building may be allowed to a Petroleum Storage Tank per current language in the Draft Comp Plan language as of 3/1/25
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To view the license for Sunoco's (Gulf's license originally). Select the link. The list is alphabetical. Go to "Sunoco Midstream LLC (formerly Portland Terminals, LLC and Gulf Oil Limited Partnership)" file # A-390-71-P-R/M
https://www.maine.gov/tools/whatsnew/index.php?topic=DEP+Minor+Source
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Health impacts from the cancerous volatile organics from bulk petroleum storage tanks in the Target Area (Shipyard District). This was noted by the city on a Brownfield Grant application.
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Former CEO of the American Lung Association of Maine (for more than 20 years) says (paraphrasing) proximty to Oil Storage Tanks matters.
Link to his Testimony at Ld71 Chapter 171
https://legislature.maine.gov/testimony/resources/ENR20230208Miller133203542235456706.pdf
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Link to the testimony
https://legislature.maine.gov/testimony/resources/ENR20230208Morelli133197492070156259.pdf
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3 - Sea Level Rise
Used a Contour Map to quantify the 6.8 ft discrepancy in Plannings' depiction of 8.8 ft SLR w/100 yr storm.
Here is another way of illustrating my point. If we wanted to visualize adding 8.8 sea level rise with 100 year storm to the conditions that we found in Jan. of 2024; one would have to add an additional 6.8 ft of water level to what planning displayed as 8.8ft.
Go to 43:46 to see the 8.8ft
In the previous post you saw the planning department display 8.8ft SLR with a 100 year that had a 6 foot discrepancy when compared to the January 13 2024 storm water level and an elevation map and 8.8 ft SLR. Here I show the impact above much smaller two foot error.
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SCITUATE MASS. - Sea level breaching Sea wall. If we don't use what could easily happen like "observed Sea level rise of 14ft like in Jan of
MAP IT YOURSELF THE WAY YOU WANT!
1st what is desired wave height
2nd what is desired storm surge
3rd what is desired Sea Level Rise
4th add all three together
5th With mapping software (link below) select the desired Sea level Rise that best matches the sum of your desired inputs. Also, there is a tutorial lower on the page found at the link. If you can't see the layers it may be too zoomed in.
https
A different but informative map which compares "acceleration/deceleration direction" of the sea level rise. Each span is one decade to another. One can even add the sea levels at each dot and add them all together to get an idea of the total sea level rise (high scenario). Actual is of course dependent on ice sheet melt and how we react to global climate change. Go to page 96.
Here is Reality vs. Simulation. In 1978 & in Jan 2024 the Portland Tide Gauge went beyond 14 ft. That's 2 storms in a 50 year span beyond 14ft. We know with climate change comes even more severe storms. It's reasonable we'll get another in 50 years.
In the illustration is a fairly accurate comparison of South Portland's Simulation of 3ft Sea Level Rise + a 100 year storm compared to what we saw in
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4 - Emissions Testing at Cushings Point
South Portland Map with Oil Tank locations with attached info like Major or Minor Emitters- Also, use this link in coordination with link below to find exactly all products tanks may hold
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-ABOVE -
locations of fenceline sensors required by legislation from 2023 ld71 chapter 171. This tank farm is adjacent to Shipyard District in South Portland.
-BELOW -
Explanation of all that is required by the DEP by Chapter 171. Within the red rectangle is where fenceline testing is noted.
Fence-Line testing, part of ld71 chapter 171 which was approved in 2023. You can see the sensor locations in the pictures
This is a link to the report
https://www.maine.gov/dep/ftp/AIR/licenses/ch171/2024%20Q3%20A0390%20Fenceline.pdf
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From Maine's AAG AMBIENT AIR GUIDELINES . This section of the chart captures Benzene.
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5 - Maine Comp Plan Manual & Maine Statutes
"a plan that reflects the publics interest" An excerpt of an email sent to the State of Maine Comp Plan Assistance Program Director asking what the Role was for a Comp Plan Comittee Member.
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Maine Statutes that apply to the role of Comp Plan Comittee Members
* Encourage citizen input
* Allow public discussions
* Take in written comments
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Return to public as necessary before moving on to Step 4.
Link to download the Manual
https://www.maine.gov/dacf/municipalplanning/docs/2005manual_lowres.pdf
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A Maine Comp Plan Manual Guidline
* Seek Public Input
* Get Public Reaction
* Repeat aa needed before going to next step
Link to download the Manual
https://www.maine.gov/dacf/municipalplanning/docs/2005manual_lowres.pdf
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MAINE'S COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING MANUAL catagorizes technical hazards like chemical spills under the same umbrella as natural hazards in regards to land use.
Link to download the Manual
https://www.maine.gov/dacf/municipalplanning/docs/2005manual_lowres.pdf
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6 -DNA
"Municipal Officials", encouraged PKRealty, certainly not all the officials, as the City Council always could have easily updated zoning, via comp plan alignment as a group, had they truly wanted to. So who were these officials that did the urging? Who were those that wanted and still wants to force this down on all the rest that have been fighting against it. It doesn't take much time to see the
FORMER COMP PLAN CHAIR
"YARD SOUTH has the potential to be a model for how the waterfront may develop over the next 12+ years." This was told to PK Realty (Yard South) seldom heard, if at all, after that meeting
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PLANNING DIRECTOR
"Broadway is vey limited because it is so built out, the only avenue to this is adding lanes"
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WHERE THE COMMITTEE WENT AGAINST THE CONSULTANT, AND THE PUBLIC AND THE STATE OF MAINE COMP PLAN ASSITANCE DIRECTORS DIRECTIONS.
"that was in the staff comments"......"that's not how I look at it".....VIDEO OF SOPO RESIDENTS VOTES BEING reduced in importance due to lack of acceptable wisdom to stand alone. (EASTERN WATERFRONT)... Read ahead for link...
*** Start watching 1:26:45 ***
Onsite parking requirements is something the Developers wanted removed from the very beginning.
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7 - Housing: can demand be met without losing the reason we live here?
HOUSING STUDY by Crane Associates Inc. for the city of South Portland.
TITLE - Housing Needs Assessment Strategy
Page 83
https://www.southportland.gov/DocumentCenter/View/447/Housing-Assessment-and-Strategy-Report-PDF
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From the Census Bureau Dec 2022
WHICH STATES HAVE THE HIGHEST PERCENTAGE OF VACANT HOUSING?
* MAINE TOPS THE LIST at 22.6% in 2021*
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