The city's Planning Board sent a message to Pike Industries on Tuesday night,- John C.L. Morgan
voting 5-1 to support new zoning that would restrict Pike's operations in the
Five Star Industrial Park and rule out its plan to build an asphalt plant. After
the vote, Pike officials charged the Planning Board with rubber-stamping a
proposal promoted by the city and Westbrook Works, a private group that opposes
the company's operations. The City Council is scheduled to review the new zoning
on Dec. 7, said City Administrator Jerre Bryant, who did not attend Tuesday's
meeting. The council will have the final say on the zoning change.
Related: Planning Board Tables Pike Zoning Change (October 21, 2009)
Related: Pike, IDEXX Unable to Reach Compromise (October 16, 2009)
Related: Pike: We've Sued Westbrook (March 2, 2009)
1 comment:
Kudos to the Westbrook Planning Board for setting the stage for supporting and promoting sustainable development in Westbrook that will provide a wide range of good paying jobs in Southern Maine. The zoning change that they have now forwarded to the City Council with a recommendation to approve will provide employment opportunities to Mainers that often exist only outside the state.
Also kudos to the Portland Press Herald for correctly framing this dispute as between Pike and the neighboring businesses and residents rather than simply between Pike and IDEXX as Pike continually claims (once again in comments they provided to the PPH for this reporting). This is a fight for the future of Westbrook and not a simple dispute between two large businesses. This is why Pike's recent "compromise" offer was properly rejected by IDEXX - they once again ignored the interests and concerns of the other involved parties and thought they could cut a backroom deal with IDEXX assuming they'd put their corporate interests above the broader community interest.
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