AUBURN — A Planning Board meeting next week on proposed zone changes will feature two sessions to accommodate the public feedback anticipated.

The four changes under consideration Tuesday are the first slate of several expected to move forward following adoption of a new Comprehensive Plan last year, which calls for big updates to the city’s zoning regulations. Due to the considerable land area that would be affected by the changes, more than 3,000 notices were sent to property owners leading up to the meeting Tuesday.

The proposals include 148 acres off Gracelawn Road that would move from the agriculture and resource protection zone to a commercial development district; more than 700 acres off Washington Street that would become a “gateway district”; and an expansion of the city’s “core urban residential area” stemming from Court Street that would affect some 1,600 acres.

The Washington Street and Court Street changes would utilize form-based code, a means of regulating land development to achieve a specific urban form.

Eric Cousens, director of planning and permitting, said Friday that due to the public interest, coupled with COVID-19 precautions, the city has attempted to split the session into two separate meetings, each with a cap on attendees. The city has asked attendees to register, and once the amount of interest was apparent, decided to broadcast the meetings on Zoom, he said.

A limit of 90 people will be split between the Council Chamber and the community room across the hall.

Cousens said after the notices were sent out, his office has received an estimated 300 calls or emails regarding the proposals and what they mean. He said once residents are provided the information, about 75% “are comfortable” with the changes.

He said the proposed change to the Court Street district has “by far” received the most inquiries, which he expects is mostly due to the scope of the change.

The proposal would essentially rename the urban residential zone to traditional neighborhood development district, which according to an earlier memo, would “allow for the development of a wide range of residential and community uses at a density of up to 16 units per acre in areas that are served” by public utilities.

It’s considered the city’s “core urban residential area,” featuring sections of Court, Lake and Turner streets; and Park, Western and Gamage avenues. Officials have said the changes, similar to an expansion of form-based code in the downtown earlier this year, are meant to give homeowners more options for remodeling, renovating or adding accessory dwellings.

Cousens said zoning in those areas requires a 25-foot setback and 100 feet of road frontage to build, but a majority of the neighborhoods there now do not meet those standards. He said some newer developments have been “forced to build out of that character” of the older homes and neighborhoods, and the change is meant to correct that.

Many of the proposed changes in the pipeline are intended to encourage new housing and more housing variety, part of a push from Mayor Jason Levesque to meet a goal of 2,000 more housing units by 2025.

City staff has said that some of what Auburn has done already to urge new housing — like expanding form-based code and allowing for secondary dwelling units in most zones — has been recommended by a recent state commission on housing.

Levesque said recently that the changes in the Court Street residential neighborhoods will make it easier for people to build homes on vacant parcels that have been undevelopable due to the current zoning.

The changes to the Gracelawn area were prompted by a recent Lake Auburn study. A large swath of the land in question had historically been considered part of the watershed boundary, but the study recommended moving the boundary out based on years of use as a gravel pit. The study found that stormwater from the area is no longer entering the watershed.

If the land shifts to a commercial district, Levesque has said eventual development could include a mix of retail, residential and recreation opportunities.

Also on Tuesday, the board will conduct a hearing on changes to the city’s phosphorus ordinance, which also comes from the recent lake study.

Cousens said it’s part of several recommendations that the city will consider moving forward that will create a “low impact development standard” in the watershed. This one pertains to the city’s phosphorus standard, which he said is outdated. A memo said it will update the design standards from a 1990 version to a 2016 version used by the state.

Moving forward, Auburn officials will also consider updates to the city’s septic design standards in the watershed, which could simultaneously make better-performing systems the norm while allowing more homes to be built.

The first session Tuesday, from 6 to 7:30 p.m., is to address the phosphorus ordinance changes and Gracelawn area update. After a short break, the board will conduct hearings on the Court Street and Washington Street changes until 9:30 p.m.

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