NEW GLOUCESTER – A concept of a densely designed future Upper Gloucester Village was unveiled at Wednesday’s Zoning Committee meeting.

A proposed design was developed by committee member Steve Chandler. The plan spans roughly 350 acres from Route 100 at the blinking light including the Bald Hill Road to the Sawyer Road, Upper Village Street, Peacock Hill Road to the Hatch Road and back to Route 100 at Hodgman’s Frozen Custard stand.

Net acreage that excludes roads and wetlands brings the total acreage down to 244 for development.

A public drinking water supply and possibly a water treatment plant would be necessary for the plan to be feasible, it was noted.

Chandler said this first attempt at a plan allows at least 1,000 people to reside or do business in the area.

He broke the land-use plan down into tentative zones, including commercial mix, residential, dense residential and business park.

The commercial mix of 66 acres would include green space, two garages, metal fabrication plant, 100-bed nursing home, three condominiums of 10 units each, two day care centers, one laundry, a dairy outlet, two farm stands, a car sales business, 48 condo units in four apartment buildings, one farm and two restaurants, for example.

“This plan needs to be fine tuned,” said Chandler. “Leave it where it is for now and use it as a touchstone.”

The Zoning Committee has spearheaded efforts to make Upper Gloucester more business-and pedestrian-friendly in the future. Based on the findings in an economic and business study that concluded last summer, Upper Gloucester was one of two business areas that needs planning for the future.

A public drinking water supply study is under way at New Gloucester Fairgrounds to determine if the site has potential as a public water supply. A public sewer may also be considered.

New Gloucester currently relies on private wells for drinking water and septic systems townwide.

Historic contamination of drinking water from gasoline in Upper Gloucester was identified in the late 1980s and remains under the scrutiny of the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, which provides safe drinking water and/or carbon filtration systems to four properties.

An open salt pile at Upper Gloucester requires the town to provide drinking water and filter systems to several households.

The Upper Gloucester Village is only one piece of land planning management before the committee, said chairman Larry Zuckerman.

“The Upper Village would be a magnet for growth. An active Upper Village would draw development, that is only one piece of the puzzle,” Chandler said.

Chandler is a principal of the Chandler Brothers, a land holding company that owns roughly 2,800 acres of land throughout New Gloucester.