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NO WIN SITUATION
The Lisbon Planning Board has been challenged by the town to resolve the Route 9 situation created by town mismanagement. The challenge is: “How to cover up the mismanagement and how to keep the illegal businesses open?”
On October 19, 2011, the Comprehensive Plan was amended. The Comprehensive Plan is how the people envisioned Lisbon to look for the next ten years. This Comprehensive Plan was approved by the state and the town enacted ordinances to ensure compliance with the desires of the people.
According to the Comprehensive Plan approved by the people of Lisbon and the state, “Land use patterns in the Route 9 corridor are primarily residential and rural/open space. Under current zoning, the corridor is placed in two zones, Limited Residential and Rural Open Space. The Limited Residential District does not allow for commercial type uses and the Rural Open Space District limits commercial type uses to recreation and natural resource based.” You would think this would be clear enough for anyone to understand.
Over the years, approximately ten (10) businesses have been operating along the Route 9 corridor. These business owners have been notified these businesses are in violation of the town ordinances and the owners have totally ignored these violations. The majority of these businesses are neither recreation nor natural resource based. So how were they allowed to be established? I believe it was the “Good Old Boys” syndrome. The management of this town allowed this situation to blossom and the town has been protecting these business owners for years.
The problem is the town shut down certain businesses and allowed others to operate. According to the law, this is called discrimination and is illegal. Now the Planning Board is struggling with how to make these businesses legal and allow them to continue to operate in violation of the ordinances and the Comprehensive Plan.
The master plan is to call these businesses “Home Occupation”. Well, it makes no difference if you call them Home Occupation, Mom & Pop, Small Business or any other name to make you sleep better; but if they are not recreation or natural resource based then they are always going to be illegal.
I am not against anyone trying to make a living in this poor economy but what I am against is the mismanagement by the town and people who place themselves above the law. If the town wants to change the Comprehensive Plan to allow all these illegal activities, so be it; but to totally ignore it for their friends is wrong! Do not try and cover up the mistakes by management or the protection of friends by compounding the situation and put this town in a legal battle it cannot win.
Shut these businesses down in violation of our ordinances and the Comprehensive Plan instead of trying to justify the town’s mismanagement by looking for a loop hole to make you sleep better at night.
Do what is right for Lisbon!!!!!!
Larry Fillmore
Concerned Citizen
On October 19, 2011, the Comprehensive Plan was amended. The Comprehensive Plan is how the people envisioned Lisbon to look for the next ten years. This Comprehensive Plan was approved by the state and the town enacted ordinances to ensure compliance with the desires of the people.
According to the Comprehensive Plan approved by the people of Lisbon and the state, “Land use patterns in the Route 9 corridor are primarily residential and rural/open space. Under current zoning, the corridor is placed in two zones, Limited Residential and Rural Open Space. The Limited Residential District does not allow for commercial type uses and the Rural Open Space District limits commercial type uses to recreation and natural resource based.” You would think this would be clear enough for anyone to understand.
Over the years, approximately ten (10) businesses have been operating along the Route 9 corridor. These business owners have been notified these businesses are in violation of the town ordinances and the owners have totally ignored these violations. The majority of these businesses are neither recreation nor natural resource based. So how were they allowed to be established? I believe it was the “Good Old Boys” syndrome. The management of this town allowed this situation to blossom and the town has been protecting these business owners for years.
The problem is the town shut down certain businesses and allowed others to operate. According to the law, this is called discrimination and is illegal. Now the Planning Board is struggling with how to make these businesses legal and allow them to continue to operate in violation of the ordinances and the Comprehensive Plan.
The master plan is to call these businesses “Home Occupation”. Well, it makes no difference if you call them Home Occupation, Mom & Pop, Small Business or any other name to make you sleep better; but if they are not recreation or natural resource based then they are always going to be illegal.
I am not against anyone trying to make a living in this poor economy but what I am against is the mismanagement by the town and people who place themselves above the law. If the town wants to change the Comprehensive Plan to allow all these illegal activities, so be it; but to totally ignore it for their friends is wrong! Do not try and cover up the mistakes by management or the protection of friends by compounding the situation and put this town in a legal battle it cannot win.
Shut these businesses down in violation of our ordinances and the Comprehensive Plan instead of trying to justify the town’s mismanagement by looking for a loop hole to make you sleep better at night.
Do what is right for Lisbon!!!!!!
Larry Fillmore
Concerned Citizen
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