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Record of Proceedings

Brunswick Town Council Meeting - October 6, 2025: Growth Moratorium, Parks Acquisition, and Ordinance Updates

Town Council — Monday, October 6, 2025
BodyBrunswick, Maine
SessionTown Council
DateMonday, October 6, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 3:45:11

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it
0:07

Good evening and welcome to the October sixth, twenty twenty five Brunswick Town Council meeting.

0:18

All counselors are present, and Clerk Smith was the meeting properly noticed.

0:52

And a second by Councillor McDonald.

1:03

I'll call the vote.

1:07

Yes, Councillor Anderson.

1:09

Yes.

1:10

Councillor Hicks.

1:11

Councillor Shedd.

1:12

Yes.

1:13

Councillor Wynne.

1:14

Yes.

1:14

Councillor McDonald.

1:15

Yes.

1:16

Councillor Wilson.

1:17

Yes.

1:17

And the chair votes yes.

1:20

And the item passes with the unanimous vote of the council.

31:19

Welcome back.

31:20

I am resuming the meeting and I ask that all electronic devices be silenced.

31:29

And would you please rise for the pledge of a lead?

31:33

I pledge allegiance to the United States of America.

31:38

And too many public forces.

31:42

One nation under God.

31:52

Are there counselors any adjustments to the agenda?

31:59

I have one that has already been taken care of.

32:03

Uh representative Arford will be here at our next meeting on the twentieth, not this evening.

32:20

Any announcements from the council.

32:26

I have two seeing no one else raising their hands, I'll go ahead.

35:00

This is something that needs to take place.

35:14

To protect in access of 3,000 people.

35:19

And there's more than and that's a minimum figure.

35:24

Just in, I figure there's around 20 uh 2,000 to 2400 just in Bay Bridge.

35:30

Not even talking about Maplewood Manor, and there's still two or three other trail smaller correla parks.

35:36

So we're talking a sizable amount of citizens in this town.

35:46

I'm gonna say abused.

35:50

I'm gonna try and be nice.

35:53

And that's one of my nice words when I start thinking about what's happening to these people.

36:00

Citizens, our neighbors, our friends.

36:07

This cannot happen.

36:10

Um I I'm very upset.

36:12

I uh don't claim to be an expert in housing.

36:16

If you want to talk to me about police or how to shoot a gun, I'm right there.

36:22

But let me tell you, I am deplored by what I'm seeing these people in these mobile home parks, citizens in these mobile home parks, are subjected to I'm hoping other counselors will comment on this.

36:43

Uh I think I've been before I lose it and start really going on a tirade about this.

36:51

I'm going to step down.

36:54

Thank you, Councillor.

36:56

Uh Chair, can you or staff uh tell us why this is being delayed so much or walk through the timeline of why it needs to wait that long?

37:07

Um the in fact the staff can probably speak more directly, but we are involving most of our planning and economic development staff in the moratorium that is being presented tonight on growth in the non-I mean on growth in the non-growth areas.

37:36

Our efforts have been directed there.

37:40

Uh we don't necessarily have the bandwidth right now to attack two substantial topics at the same time.

37:52

We're delaying this two meetings only.

37:57

And in that time, we hope to gather enough data to really support the kind of action we're looking for.

38:08

At this point, we're not sure that we have all the adequate data.

38:15

And if I know this breaks some of our protocol, but if there is anyone from the staff that would like to speak to this, that's fine.

38:26

Please do so.

38:33

Any quiz other questions from the council.

38:40

Thank you.

38:41

Okay.

38:48

Oh, public comment, of course.

38:51

My gosh.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural███████████████████████████27%
Tree Management███████████████15%
Zoning Regulations██████████10%
Public Works████████8%
Comprehensive Planning███████7%
Public Engagement██████6%
Public Comment█████5%
Parks and Recreation█████5%
Affordable Housing████4%
Summary of Proceedings

Brunswick Town Council Meeting - October 6, 2025

The Brunswick Town Council met on October 6, 2025, to discuss a range of topics including a proposed moratorium on rural subdivisions, the potential acquisition of 2 Columbus Drive for parks and recreation, landscape preservation and tree fund ordinances, and public comments on mobile home park conditions and community resources. The meeting included multiple public hearings set for October 20 and unanimous votes on most items, with a 7-2 vote to refine a draft moratorium for further consideration.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Kati Rogers (Director, Little Sparrows Clothing Closet) described the new clothing resource at Barabo and McKean Streets, serving 20-30 people weekly since July 23. She noted the need for volunteers and renovations to meet fire codes.
  • Steve Walker (900 River Road) urged the council to adopt a planning board and project review board model (like Freeport) to address ordinance bottlenecks, and later expressed strong support for the moratorium on rural growth, arguing sprawl increases property taxes and harms natural resources.
  • Marika Gyason (Bay Bridge Estates) criticized the delay in addressing mobile home park rent stabilization, noting alarms raised since December 2024 and the $800,000 granted to Lynnhaven (now Blueberry Fields) residents in September 2024, while over 800 households remain at risk.
  • Carolyn Eklund (Brunswick) thanked the council for their service and emphasized the importance of the Pledge of Allegiance as a reminder of values like unity and justice for all.
  • Marcia Good Townsend (Baybridge) described personal hardship as a caregiver for a husband with Alzheimer's, living on a fixed income facing large rent increases from a new company, and called the lack of a moratorium a "slap in the face."
  • Steve Walker (again) and Sean Hogan (via Zoom) supported the rural growth moratorium; Hogan also raised concerns about abutter notification reliability and the need to update traffic safety standards beyond trip generation.
  • Brett Shields (Woodside Road homeowner) expressed frustration about clear-cutting near his property and potential traffic dangers, but was informed his area is within the growth zone and not affected by the proposed rural moratorium.

Manager's Report

  • Main Street Project: Trees installed on east side; raised crosswalks now perpendicular.
  • Brunswick Landing/Airport Updates: RAB meeting Oct 9, Airport Master Plan meeting Oct 23, MURA board meeting Oct 29.
  • Root Cause Analysis for MIRROR: Posted online; attributed to an electronic flaw.
  • Election Location Change: All voting moves to Brunswick Rec Center starting November; absentee voting begins at Town Hall.
  • Trash/Recycling Routes: New routes effective November 3; maps on website.
  • Road Salt Practices: Public Works Director Ryan Leighton presented the transition to salt-only anti-icing with liquid deicer (Magic Minus Zero), annual MDOT training, and ground speed controls on 11 of 19 routes.
  • Warming Center Update: Abby King (Gathering Place board) and Carol O’Donnell reported the center at 10 Tenney Way will open Nov 15-Apr 30, with expanded hours (4pm-8am), hot meals served, and need for volunteers and donations. Last year served ~70-80 individuals, with capacity of 35 per night.

Discussion Items

  • Weapons Ordinance (Item 125): Planning Director Erdman explained an outdated reference to Section 701 of the 1997 zoning ordinance. Councillor Ecker requested moving the public hearing to November 17 to allow an affected party to attend. Motion passed 8-0 (one absent).
  • Landscape Preservation and Tree Fund (Items 126 & 127): Principal Planner Jimmy Dielman presented amendments requiring a landscape preservation permit for clearing over one acre, preserving a 30-foot buffer with 30% of trees (10" DBH or greater) along property lines, and a new Tree Fund to accept fees in lieu of preservation. Councilors raised questions about definitions, application to small lots, waiver fees ($100 per DBH), and whether the Tree Fund should be narrowly focused. Motion to set public hearing on Oct 20 passed unanimously for both items.
  • Acquisition of 2 Columbus Drive (Item 128): Manager Henzi and Parks & Recreation Director Tom Farrell described the opportunity to buy the Pathway Vineyard Church property for $2 million (from unassigned general fund balance). The facility would consolidate parks operations, provide indoor training space, locker rooms, and a commercial kitchen, and include a baseball diamond, playground, and pavilion. Councilor Watson and Ecker expressed strong support. Motion to set public hearing Oct 20 passed unanimously.
  • Growth Moratorium (Item 131): Planning Director Erdman and Town Attorney Collins presented a draft moratorium on new subdivisions outside the designated growth area for six months, to allow time for comprehensive plan adoption and ordinance updates. Collins noted that state law protects projects with complete applications. Council discussion included data showing accelerating rural growth (14 units/year 2010-2014, now 111 under development). Councilor Shedd questioned the emergency basis and scope; Councilor Ecker proposed specific deliverables (comprehensive plan, growth cap, land clearing ordinance, updated traffic rules, state law analysis). Councilor Hicks wanted to move quickly without listing actions. After debate, Councilor Ecker moved to direct staff to refine the draft moratorium language with actionable items and bring it back for setting a public hearing on Oct 20. Motion passed 7-2 (Hicks and Shedd opposed).
  • Appointments (Item 132): Vice Chair McDonald reported the appointments committee met twice, recommending William White and Karen Topp for Sustainability Committee (3-year terms), Richard McGuinness for Assessment Review Committee, and Claudia Knox for Village Review Board. A preview of planned committee consolidations (Town Commons to Parks & Rec, Tree Committee to Conservation) was given for November. Motion to accept appointments passed unanimously.

Key Outcomes

  • Item 125 (Weapons Ordinance): Public hearing set for November 17, 2025 (8-0).
  • Item 126 (Landscape Preservation): Public hearing set for October 20, 2025 (unanimous).
  • Item 127 (Tree Fund): Public hearing set for October 20, 2025 (unanimous).
  • Item 128 (2 Columbus Drive Acquisition): Public hearing set for October 20, 2025 (unanimous).
  • Item 129 (Purchase & Sales Agreement): Town Manager authorized to execute agreement conditional on council ratification (unanimous).
  • Item 130 (General Assistance Maximums): Public hearing set for October 20, 2025 (unanimous).
  • Item 131 (Growth Moratorium): Motion passed 7-2 to direct staff to refine draft language and bring back for public hearing setting on October 20.
  • Item 132 (Appointments): All recommendations approved (unanimous).
  • Consent Agenda: Approved (unanimous).

Meeting Transcript

Good evening and welcome to the October sixth, twenty twenty five Brunswick Town Council meeting. All counselors are present, and Clerk Smith was the meeting properly noticed. And a second by Councillor McDonald. I'll call the vote. Yes, Councillor Anderson. Yes. Councillor Hicks. Councillor Shedd. Yes. Councillor Wynne. Yes. Councillor McDonald. Yes. Councillor Wilson. Yes. And the chair votes yes. And the item passes with the unanimous vote of the council. Welcome back. I am resuming the meeting and I ask that all electronic devices be silenced. And would you please rise for the pledge of a lead? I pledge allegiance to the United States of America. And too many public forces. One nation under God. Are there counselors any adjustments to the agenda? I have one that has already been taken care of. Uh representative Arford will be here at our next meeting on the twentieth, not this evening. Any announcements from the council. I have two seeing no one else raising their hands, I'll go ahead. This is something that needs to take place. To protect in access of 3,000 people. And there's more than and that's a minimum figure. Just in, I figure there's around 20 uh 2,000 to 2400 just in Bay Bridge. Not even talking about Maplewood Manor, and there's still two or three other trail smaller correla parks. So we're talking a sizable amount of citizens in this town. I'm gonna say abused. I'm gonna try and be nice. And that's one of my nice words when I start thinking about what's happening to these people. Citizens, our neighbors, our friends. This cannot happen. Um I I'm very upset. I uh don't claim to be an expert in housing. If you want to talk to me about police or how to shoot a gun, I'm right there. But let me tell you, I am deplored by what I'm seeing these people in these mobile home parks, citizens in these mobile home parks, are subjected to I'm hoping other counselors will comment on this. Uh I think I've been before I lose it and start really going on a tirade about this. I'm going to step down. Thank you, Councillor. Uh Chair, can you or staff uh tell us why this is being delayed so much or walk through the timeline of why it needs to wait that long? Um the in fact the staff can probably speak more directly, but we are involving most of our planning and economic development staff in the moratorium that is being presented tonight on growth in the non-I mean on growth in the non-growth areas. Our efforts have been directed there. Uh we don't necessarily have the bandwidth right now to attack two substantial topics at the same time.

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