AUBURN — The owner of a large Gracelawn Road parcel that has been at the center of a Lake Auburn debate is seeking to rezone a section to allow for residential development.

John Gendron, the owner of 148 acres between the Auburn Mall area and the lake, submitted a petition to amend the zoning on 58 acres to residential zoning.

As a debate over development near the watershed continues, Gendron said in a letter to the Sun Journal on Saturday that he wanted to “set the record straight” on what he’s trying to accomplish with the land. He said the goal is to build “working-class housing.”

He also repeated several times that the property is not in the watershed.

“The property is downhill from the watershed and the water flows in the opposite direction,” he said. “This is not an opinion, this is a geographical fact as determined by environmental specialists.”

He told the Sun Journal that, if approved, the first phase of development would be condominiums followed by single-family homes at an “attainable” price.

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“Our vision is to build modest, respectable homes for middle-class families that have been priced out of the Auburn housing market,” he wrote in his letter to the Sun Journal. “Our plan includes a unique look for each new segment of housing as to blend in with the current neighborhood character. Our objective is to transform an old gravel pit into a great new neighborhood that Auburn can be proud of, and that’s all that we want to accomplish.”

The land was initially rezoned in March, putting the acreage into the “general business” zoning type that allows for a range of commercial development. It has been a gravel pit for the past 90 years.

At the public hearings, residents said the city should conduct further studies on the area, given the fragility of Lake Auburn.

Petitioners hoping to reverse the rezoning submitted more than 2,000 signatures to the City Clerk’s office Thursday. Once certified, the City Council will have 30 days to either repeal the ordinance or send the issue to voters.

However, Gendron’s request to amend the zoning on 58 acres complicates the timeline.

Auburn’s code of ordinances allows anyone to request a zoning amendment with a petition signed by 25 or more registered voters. Once verified, the Planning Board must hold a hearing on the request within 45 days.

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If Gendron’s request to amend the zoning is ultimately successful, and the council repeals the March rezoning, only the remaining 90 acres would revert back to Auburn’s agricultural zone.

The request from Gendron would put the 58 acres into zoning known as T-4.2, or “traditional downtown neighborhood,” the same zoning that another petition seeks to repeal in the Court Street residential area.

Mayor Jason Levesque said Gendron’s effort to change the zoning is “a great example of local developers responding to concerns by residents.”

He said it alleviates fears he’s heard for larger commercial development, and that the T-4.2 zoning means, if it moves forward, it will be residential mixed-use development on city utilities.

While Auburn officials have cited a recent study that says the land should not be considered part of the watershed, officials in Lewiston have disputed Auburn’s authority to change the watershed definition.

On May 12, the city of Lewiston filed a civil complaint against the Auburn Water District in Androscoggin County Superior Court in Auburn.

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The civil complaint asks the court to declare that the Auburn Water District does not have the authority to change the definition of the watershed or its boundary, and that any increased development causing pollution to the lake goes against the Water District’s charter and its agreement with Lewiston.

Lewiston believes the changes could lead to the district losing its filtration waiver, which allows it to treat water without a more expensive filtration system.

In his letter, Gendron said, “Don’t be fooled by a few folks from across the river that want to pick a fight to settle old scores. Our family has been a part of this community for generations, and we have only the best interests of Auburn in mind.”

During recent public meetings in Auburn, residents have questioned why the city would pursue development near the watershed given Auburn’s undeveloped acreage elsewhere.

According to Gendron’s rezoning petition, the change “conforms to the current approved Comprehensive Plan that identifies this area as a growth area.”


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