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In May of 2005, Mount Desert citizens gathered to discuss future land-use in their town. They participated in an excercise asking them to place pins representing open space, commercial development, and various densities of residential development on a map of the town. They also had the opportunity to repsond to some preliminary draft policies and specific questions posted throughout the room. The themes that arose from this meeting are outlined below.
(policies as they were written at the time)
Themes from small group exercise:
General themes that seemed to be priorities for most participants:
-protecting the trails and the area north of Northeast Harbor
-not developing areas that would have a negative visual impact, particularly along ridgelines
-keeping Pretty Marsh rural
-support village life year-round
-concentrating development in village areas, including Somesville, particularly on existing sewer & water
-Otter Creek: infill, could have more commercial and/or mixed use
-Seal Harbor (village area): either creating more density, or revitalizing village to what it once was
-Northeast Harbor: in-town apartments, mixed use, more houses, focus on year-round
-Somesville: more density, mixed use, be able to walk around, what to do about traffic?
Other ideas:
-High density in Hall Quarry, provided that it coud be on sewer and water.
-Developing the point at the head of Somes Sound below Rt. 198, making it into a village center with stores, and housing, figuring that what there is of the existing Somesville village could not handle the existing traffic, but that a more sustantial village center is needed in Somesville.
-Multifamily housing in Northeast Harbor and Somesville.
-All housing developments outside of villages to be cluster subdivisions.
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