Justia Zoning, Planning & Land Use Opinion Summaries

Hannaford Brothers applied for a site plan review permit to construct a grocery store and drive-through pharmacy. The town's Planning Board voted to grant the permit. The Biziers and other concerned citizens directly appealed to the superior court, which affirmed the Board. The Biziers appealed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the record amply supported the Board's findings that the project was harmonious and in good scale with the natural terrain and surrounding development of the area in accordance with the town's zoning ordinance; and (2) the Board did not err in failing to conclude that Hannaford's plan to modify the dimensions of a landowner's property would create an illegal back lot, and the dimensions of the landowner's resulting lot did not bar the issuance of the site plan review permit to Hannaford. View "Bizier v. Town of Turner" on Justia Law

The Witham Family Partnership challenged two decisions of the Town of Bar Harbor's Zoning Board of Appeals (Board) in connection with North South Corporation's application to construct a hotel. The Partnership attended two public hearings before the Board on North South's appeal of the planning board's denial of its application. The Board subsequently reversed the planning board's denial. The Partnership also filed its own appeal challenging the portion of the planning board's decision finding that North South's proposed project conformed to certain criteria for obtaining a building permit. The Board affirmed the planning board's decision. The Partnership then filed a Me. R. Civ. P. 80B complaint challenging the Board's decisions in both North South's appeal and in the Partnership's appeal. The superior court dismissed the complaint on grounds that the Partnership lacked standing. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the Partnership had standing to challenge the Board's decision in both appeals in a Rule 80B review of those decisions.

The Town of Lebanon filed a land use complaint against East Lebanon Auto Sales (the LLC) and Linda Corbin, the sole member of the LLC, alleging that property owned by the LLC in Lebanon constituted an illegal automobile graveyard and illegal junkyard and that the property had an improper subsurface wastewater system. The district court issued a judgment against the LLC and Corbin in the amount of $2000 plus attorney fees. On appeal, the Supreme Court (1) vacated the decision of the district court as to Corbin individually, concluding that the record contained no evidence that suggested that Corbin abused the privilege of incorporating or that an unjust result would occur if only the LLC were held liable on the Town's complaint; and (2) affirmed the judgment of the district court in all other respects, finding the remaining issues raised by the LLC to be without merit.

In district court, appellants were held liable for violating the Town of Levantâs Article 1010 land use ordinance by allowing a third partyâs mobile home to be moved onto and remain on their land after receiving multiple notices of the violation. At issue was whether appellants could be held responsible for a violation caused by a third party and whether there was evidence that they played a role in leaving the mobile home on their property. The Court affirmed, holding that (1) under the four-factor analysis outlined in Town of Boothbay v. Jenness, the landowners were responsible for land use violations committed on their property, and (2) there was sufficient evidence that the appellants had notice of the violation and the ability and opportunity to correct the violation but failed to do so.