Point East, a subsidiary of National RE/sources in Greenwich, Conn., has plans to build 80 single family homes and a marina as the first phase of a $75 million development. Point East purchased an old industrial site on Birch Point in 2003 with plans to develop a maritime village with mixed residential, marine and commercial use. Townspeople overwhelmingly supported the creation of the Shoreland Business II zone to allow the project to go forward.

Central Maine Power has taken an active role in commenting on the plans for the site, since the company owns a chunk of land in the center of the proposed development, where their switching station and utility building are located, and a microwave tower at the north end of the property.

Another group that has watched the progress intently, and has had several meetings with Point East, is a grass roots organization called Stewards of the Sheepscot, formed a couple of years ago when Dragon Cement announced plans to buy the site.

Elizabeth Farish has also attended the past few meetings because she is regional site manager for Historic New England, which owns two historic buildings here. One is the Nickels-Sortwell House on Main Street, and the other is Castle Tucker, located on a hillside overlooking the harbor and the Birch Point peninsula.

At a planning board meeting last Thursday, November 10, board members reviewed the performance standards of the project. Farish, Ken Farber from CMP, and several members of SOS attended the meeting. They say the public was led to believe the planning board would not act on the application until November 28.

Toward the end of the November 10 meeting, there was a discussion about whether or not the town's planning director, Jeff Hinderliter, would have time to write up the Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law in time for the board's next scheduled meeting on Monday, November 14.

Farish, SOS members Bill Phinney and Karl Tarbox, and others say they remember board chairman Steve House saying the board would not take final action of the Point East project until November 28, and that House told project manager Scott Houldin he could "have a long weekend," an apparent reference to Houldin not needing to drive back to Maine from Connecticut on Monday.

Asked to comment on what he said at the November 10 meeting, House said Tuesday, "We said we might not act on it until the 28th. But it was on the agenda," he said, referring to the fact that the agenda had been published in the newspaper.

Asked if he noticed that the regular observers did not attend Monday night's meeting, House replied, "I noticed that."

"I think they [those who attended the November 10 meeting] will remember that we said Scott could be called for a Monday night meeting. I don't think I ever said we wouldn't take it up until the 28th."

Asked what he remembers about the November 10 meeting, Hinderliter said Tuesday, "I didn't think I could finish the Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law by Monday. The board was concerned about this. After the public hearing, the planning board only has 30 days -- that would have been up November 24."

Referring to House, Hinderliter said, "Steve asked me to try to get everything ready by Monday night." Hinderliter said he could not remember exactly what House said about the 28th.

"I'm trying to remember what was said -- I don't know if the tape had run out," he said, referring to the tape recording of the meeting.

Phinney said Tuesday he has asked to listen to the tape.

Contacted Tuesday, CMP's John Carroll said the company's attorney, Ken Farber, reported after the November 10 meeting that the board would not make a final decision on Point East until November 28. Carroll said if the company had known the planners were going to take action, they would have sent a representative to Monday night's meeting.

One planning board member, Karl Olson, asked Monday night about the previous Thursday's discussion on making a decision on the 28th. Olson also asked at Thursday's meeting if CMP was comfortable with the revised plans. Farber said he hadn't seen the plans yet, adding that he would like to take them back to the company.

The planning board members approved three motions Monday night: the final plan for the first phase; the application for the first phase; and the Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law.

After the votes on the plan and application, Hinderliter distributed copies of his Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law. Board members took some time to read over the multi-page document, which spells out how the project meets the performance standards. In addition, the project must still get approval by several federal and state agencies before construction can begin.

One of the corrections which had to be made in the Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law was the wording on the vote, which Hinderliter had written was unanimous. The votes were all in favor, except for Olson, who abstained.

Asked why he wrote this in advance of a vote being taken, Hinderliter said Tuesday that the board seemed to be in agreement last week that all of the performance standards had been met, so he "took a chance." The document was later changed to reflect the 8-0-1 vote, he said.