FARMINGTON – Two issues scrutinized carefully by the Planning Board on Monday night actually won’t be decided until at least March.

The board voted that two applications should be put aside until members could tour the sites and hold public hearings.

One is from the University of Maine at Farmington to build a 44,600-square-foot environmentally-friendly headquarters for its College of Education, Health and Rehabilitation at Lincoln and High streets.

The other is from Anson residents Scott and Thomas Dillion who proposed a housing project for the former Osborne family homestead and surrounding fields and forests. If approved, the subdivision would break the land on both sides of Osborne Road into East Grant View Estates with 10 lots of roughly two acres and one 18.5-acre parcel and West Grand View Estates would have six lots around two acres and four of 10 acres or more.

Local attorney and Lincoln Street resident Edward David argued Monday night that a project of the magnitude of UMF’s, which was “effecting the infrastructure of the town,” should go before residents.

Board Chairman Bussie York agreed. Alternate Tim Wallace said a public hearing would raise the enthusiasm surrounding the project in the eyes of townspeople.

As for the subdivision going before a hearing, town Code Enforcement Officer Steve Kaiser said it’s a common practice.

“This is the first sizable subdivision we’ve had since the ’80s,” he said. “The board just wants to be very careful and make sure they don’t miss anything.”

The board would like more information, he said, about traffic around the proposed subdivision and drainage.

A visit to the UMF site will be at 1 p.m. Friday, and the subdivision site at 2 p.m.

Public hearings on both applications will be held at the planning board’s next regular meeting at 7 p.m. Monday, March 15.

Kaiser said both the hearing and site site walks will help the board the information make a truly informed decision on both projects.

sdepoy@sunjournal.com

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