HALLOWELL — The co-owners of The Quarry Tap Room will be before the Hallowell Planning Board board at a special meeting Wednesday to complete a minor site review, two weeks after the board approved the bar and restaurant’s expansion plan.
Steve Lachance, Chris Vallee and Larry Hunter presented detailed design plans, at the request of the Planning Board, during the April 20 meeting. However, several parts of their application needed further scrutiny, though it is not clear what specific aspects of the proposal need review.
Planning Board Chairwoman Danielle Obery said she did not know what they will be reviewing next week, and interim City Manager and Code Enforcement Officer Maureen AuCoin did not return a request for clarification.
The chapter in Hallowell’s ordinance about site plan reviews includes 34 pages that lay out the process. The site plan review is in place to “protect public health and safety, promote the general welfare of the community and conserve the environment by assuring that nonresidential and multifamily residential construction is designed and developed in a manner which assures that adequate provisions are made” for public and environmental wellness.
Plans for the restaurant and bar, located at 122 Water St., include an addition to the existing structure that will house a new kitchen and two outdoor patios on the vacant lot next to the restaurant, which the co-owners purchased last August from developer and real estate broker Terry Berry.
The co-owners first made their pitch to the Planning Board in March, but the board thought the presentation lacked specifics, so the matter was tabled. During both meetings in March and April, residents including John and Janet Merrill, who own the building next door to the Quarry, expressed concern about noise levels and increased customer traffic.
The Merrills have tenants in their building and worry that the noise would be unbearable during late-night hours. Neither of the Merrills could be reached for comment.
The Planning Board also will hear again the Liberal Cup restaurant’s plan to relocate its existing entrance door to the old RiverBooks space next to its current entrance. Manager Casey Hynes presented his plan at last week’s meeting, but the board wanted additional information, so it tabled the application.
Hynes said he had no idea what additional information the board members wanted. He described the current door, which everyone on the board was familiar with, and said it would move next door, but he did not provide any renderings or images. Owner Geoff Houghton said he hopes to have a rendering at the Wednesday meeting.
“Or I’ll sketch something,” Houghton said. “They didn’t ask for (images) specifically, but I guess that’s what they’re looking for.”
Houghton acquired the RiverBooks space in early January. He said the 6-foot-by-40-foot space is probably the smallest piece of property ever sold in Kennebec County.
“It will make a great entryway so people aren’t walking in to customers,” Houghton said. “Obviously I want it to look good, and I’ll make sure it is consistent with the rest of the building.”
He said the project should take no more than a couple of days and cost around $5,000. Houghton would probably close the restaurant for a day, so he hopes the Planning Board can make a decision at Wednesday’s meeting.
“I’m going to do it right and bring it back to being a part of the building,” Houghton said.
Jason Pafundi — 621-5663
Twitter: @jasonpafundiKJ
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