"Our intent is to maintain the aesthetic look of our village that has become so noticed by the public," Monson Town Manager Judy Doore said Monday.

A town beautification committee and business owners have worked hard in recent years to improve the appearance of the town, which is on the trail to the Moosehead Lake region. With businesses changing hands, town officials want to ensure that the beautification efforts proceed with no setbacks, according to Doore.

Town officials are asking residents to allow the code enforcement officer or planning board to require buffer strips along property lines when they are determined necessary to shield incompatible uses from one another.

If approved, buffers also may be required to block prevailing winds from blowing debris from development sites, to shield lighting from residential properties and to minimize the view of exposed storage areas, sand and gravel operations, junkyards, timber harvesting operations, and similar operations.

The proposed building-design standards specify the type of building materials that can be used for structures in the village district and details the use of Dumpsters, landscaping and entryways. The use of cinder block, concrete and concrete block will be prohibited on any portion of a structure that is visible from the building's exterior, with exception of use in the building's foundation if the standards are approved.

Doore said the intent is not to discourage development but to preserve the established aesthetics of the village.

"New technology and building designs are gorgeous in their environment but may not fit in the aesthetics of our village," she said.
"This content originally appeared as a copyrighted article in the Tuesday, October 19, 2004 edition of the Bangor Daily NEWS and is used here with permission."