AUBURN — Planners on Tuesday began fleshing out the rules they would need before allowing slaughterhouses in the city’s largest zoning district.

Members of the Planning Board considered limits to building sizes and the number of employees in regard to the impact new slaughterhouses would have on neighbors.

“It seems conceivable to me that we can make a positive recommendation on this if we could agree on some limiting conditions,” said member Robert Boyer. He suggested city rules aimed at limiting a slaughterhouse operation’s size, the amount of traffic it would generate and noise and odor impacts on neighbors.

Now staff will take those suggestions and prepare a new round of recommendations for the Planning Board’s Jan. 11 meeting. The board is scheduled to recommend a course of action for councilors at that meeting. Councilors will take up the matter at a meeting later that month.

Councilors Belinda Gerry, Mike Farrell, Dan Herrick, Ray Berube and Robert Hayes attended Tuesday’s meeting.

Developer Craig Linke plans to open Mainestock, a stand-alone slaughterhouse, on 21.5 acres at 512 Trapp Road. The farm, on the 21.5 acre 512 Trapp Road and the 22 acre 526 Trapp Road immediately south, was home to a chicken farm and processing operation in 1998 that was never successful.

Slaughtering operations are allowed on existing farms in the agriculture zone as an accessory use. They are allowed as stand-alone operations only in the city’s industrial zone.

If councilors ultimately approve a zoning change in the city’s Agriculture and Resource Protection district, Linke can apply for a special-use permit to build the large-animal slaughterhouse at the intersection of Trapp Road and Royal River Road. Linke said the operation would have a limited kitchen operation, preparing sausages and meat pies.

First, board member Richard Whiting suggested that staff put together a list of city ordinances that would already limit the operation. Planner Eric Cousens said he’d present a memo on that at the Jan. 11 meeting.

Members discussed setting a limit on the size of the building, but Cousens suggested limiting the number of employees would be the best way to control the size of the operation.

Cousens said he would find out how big the buildings at other Maine slaughterhouses are and how many employees they have for the Jan. 11 meeting.

Linke said Tuesday he planned to have 15 employees at his operation.

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