NORWAY — Plans to open a wedding barn on Morse Road were delayed again when it was discovered that two abutters had not been legally notified.
Planning Board Chairman Dennis Gray told a large group of residents at a meeting Thursday, Jan. 14, that abutters were not notified as required by the Site Plan Review Ordinance.
Peter Ulrickson, the potential buyer of a historic 19th century farmhouse at 107 Morse Road, filed a site plan review application last fall to approve a change-of-use request for the property so he could operate a “wedding barn.”
The weddings would be held in the barn one day per weekend and have no more than 125 guests. The expected route of traffic for guests would be from Greenwood Road to Morse Road.
A public hearing was held Dec. 10, 2015, but concern arose when it was discovered that not everyone had been properly notified. The board continued the meeting to hear comments from residents, but said another hearing may have to be held after additional notices were sent.
Planners and Ulrickson attempted to nail down the correct addresses and Ulrickson is expected to send out new notices and return to the board’s next meeting Thursday, Jan. 28.
Norway has no zoning laws, and there are no guidelines on commercial business development in residential areas. The applicant has to meet certain conditions for the change-of-use request to be approved by the Planning Board.
But some residents have expressed concern about the plan, questioning potential issues such as noise and traffic.
Because of that concern and other impacts to the area known as Swift’s Corner, a few residents asked Code Enforcement Officer Joelle Corey-Whitman about the possibility of zoning the outlying village area in North Norway to control commercial ventures that they say threaten the quiet way of life they are used to.
The house on the 20-acre property was built in 1820 and is known as the Old Whitmarsh Place.
Corey-Whitman said after December’s hearing that a number of issues have to be determined before the Planning Board gives permission for a wedding barn.
Among the outstanding issues is whether the wedding barn is a home occupation or a commercial venture. A home occupation is an occupation or profession which is carried on in a dwelling unit and is clearly incidental and secondary to the use of the dwelling for residential purposes.
ldixon@sunmediagroup.net
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