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AUBURN The City Council approved an expansion of the city’s residential “strip” zones Monday, a change officials say will give homeowners more flexibility with their land, but one that also brings up the debate over Auburn’s large agricultural zone.
According to a memo to the council from City Planner Megan Norwood, the city has a number of residential strips, primarily in northern and southern areas of Auburn that split parcels of land between two zoning districts.
Most property owners along the strips have a residence in the front of the property that is located in a residential zone, with the back portion of the property in the agricultural zone.
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AUBURN The number of people taking out nomination papers for this year’s election is lagging behind previous election cycles, so far.
As of Thursday, nine people had taken out papers to run for the 15 elected seats. All seats are up for election every two years.
According to City Clerk Sue Clements-Dallaire, at this time two years ago, some 25 people had taken out papers.
“(That’s) much different from what we’ve seen so far this year,” she said.
Earlier Thursday, Mayor Jason Levesque became the first official candidate for mayor, announcing he will seek a third term. Asked about the low numbers of candidates, Levesque said he wasn’t sure yet.
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AUBURN The City Council gave initial approval Monday night for next year’s $95.4 million spending plan, with final votes on the school and municipal budgets scheduled for May 17.
With the proposed $42.6 million municipal budget, taxpayers would see a 19 cent increase to the property tax rate. That breaks down to 10 cents from the city, 7 cents from the school department and 2 cents from the intergovernmental and county budgets.
The slight increase would bring Auburn’s property tax rate to $23.94 per $1,000 of assessed valuation, meaning a house valued at $200,000 would see an increase of $38 for the year.
The council voted 6-1 in a first reading Monday, with Councilor Belinda Gerry opposed. Passage requires an affirmative vote of four councilors at the second and final reading.
Auburn council approves equity policy sunjournal.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from sunjournal.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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AUBURN The City Council unanimously approved two measures Monday aimed at encouraging development and rehabilitation in downtown areas.
The zoning ordinance changes will expand a form-based code district known as Traditional Downtown Neighborhood to a swath of the downtown and New Auburn, from Riverside Drive to Ninth Street and parts of Broad and South Main streets.
Officials say the move better fits the character of the neighborhood and will make it easier for building owners to construct additions or renovate.
Form-based code, which is relatively new for Auburn, has been increasingly used nationwide as a way of regulating land development to achieve a specific urban form, and is seen as a way to curb urban sprawl and the deterioration of historic neighborhoods.