By Scott Taylor,Staff Writer

LEWISTON – Lisbon Street should be three lanes by November, councilors agreed Tuesday.

They approved a plan to grind off the street’s old painted lanes and put down new ones, reducing the number of lanes from two in each direction to one each way, divided by a left turn lane down the center.

But councilors also approved a last-minute plan to charge a fee to outer Lisbon Street developers. That will be put aside to pay for expanding the road to five lanes as quickly as possible.

“We know that opening this up to three lanes will encourage redevelopment in that area,” said City Administrator Jim Bennett. New development means more traffic, making the road busier and busier.

The road will have to be expanded to five lanes, and that could cost up to $8 million. Even if the state agrees to pay for most of that work, Lewiston will have to pay for part of it – and Bennett estimated the city’s share would be at least $1 million.

“I’m for the developers, who will be creating the need for the city to spend that million dollars, to pay for it,” Bennett said.

Councilors endorsed Bennett’s idea reluctantly.

“We’ve had several meetings on this, and this is the first time this idea has come up,” Councilor Mark Paradis said. “I just wish we could have had more time to consider it – more than just this very hour.”

“This has all been moving very quickly,” Bennett said.

According to the agreement, developer Nino Naous will restripe part of Lisbon Street to three lanes. He will pay for restriping from the Lisbon town line to the Maine Turnpike’s bridge over the street.

Mike Gotto, an engineer representing Naous, said he can begin work almost immediately on a convenience store of nearly 4,000 square feet at 1930 Lisbon Road. Naous hopes to finish the store in November or December and needs to have Lisbon Street restriped before the store opens.

City staff will come up with new development fee for outer Lisbon Street businesses within two months, Bennett said.