Comeau v. Town of Kittery

Summary

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court reviewed a challenge to the Kittery Planning Board’s approval of a proposed recreation center. The court held that the Board’s meeting minutes did not constitute sufficiently explicit findings of fact for judicial review and remanded for further proceedings. It affirmed the rejection of the neighbors’ claim that the public was denied an adequate opportunity to comment.

Holdings

1. The Planning Board's findings were inadequate for judicial review because the meeting minutes did not identify the facts the Board found or explain the basis for its decision, and the Board therefore failed to comply with the land use ordinance's requirement that its action be based on findings of fact.
2. The Board afforded the public a sufficient opportunity to be heard, and the record did not establish a deprivation of due process.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Planning Board made findings of fact adequate for judicial review of the project's compliance with the Kittery Land Use Ordinance and Comprehensive Plan.
2. Whether the Town demonstrated that the proposed recreation center complied with the Kittery Land Use Ordinance and Comprehensive Plan.
3. Whether the Planning Board denied the public an adequate opportunity to comment on the project and subsequent plan changes, including under due process principles.

Disposition

other