Press Release
The Town of Freeport Kicks Off Update of the Town’s Comprehensive Plan
The Freeport Planning Board encourages the community to participate in this process to create an updated vision for the future of Freeport!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 25, 2024
Contact Caroline Pelletier, Town Planner, cpelletier@freeportmaine.com (207) 865-4743, ext 107
FREEPORT, MAINE - The Town of Freeport Planning Board is in the early stages of updating the Town of Freeport’s 2011 Comprehensive Plan and hopes that all members of the community will participate in this process and share their thoughts and ideas to create a vision for the future of Freeport. Town has retained North Star Planning (through a competitive selection process) to guide the community through this process.
The Comprehensive Plan (“Plan”) is an important document for the Town as it will be used in the coming decade to guide land use policies and as a guide for municipal capital improvement planning. The Plan will build upon some of the ideas presented in the recently completed Freeport Downtown Vision Plan and the Freeport Climate Action Plan. The Comprehensive Plan looks at the community as a whole and will address important topics such as housing, transportation, public facilities and services, and natural and historic resources to name a few. Together, the community will create the vision and help shape the plan which will include goals and implementation strategies to achieve the vision.
“Developing a Comprehensive Plan is an opportunity for Freeport to come together as a community, review the trends and changes over the past decade, and together decide where we want to head. We know that like most of southern Maine, we are going to face the pressures and challenges of growth and change. Based upon other recent planning efforts, our community already recognizes that we need to see some changes to how we are supporting the vitality of our downtown and that we want to become a more sustainable and resilient community. The Comprehensive Plan is an opportunity to build upon these recent planning efforts and look at the community as a whole - Are we investing in the right municipal facilities and infrastructure? Are we doing enough to protect the environment and our marine resources? Are we growing too fast or too slow? Where do we want to see growth? How and where should we provide more housing opportunities for people to live more affordably in Town...these are the types of things we want to know people’s thoughts on,” Town Planner, Caroline Pelletier.
Sophia Wilson, Freeport’s new Town Manager states that “I am so excited to be in Freeport and welcome the opportunity to work together to create a vision for the future of Freeport. Not only will we create a vision, but we will work together on a plan to achieve that vision by setting goals and strategies that as a community, we will implement together. We are fortunate to have North Star Planning helping guide our community through this process and preparing a draft plan. The time to get involved is now and I’m so fortunate to be here as we begin this important process.”
Here are some opportunities to participate in the Comprehensive Plan update process:
Visit the project website at www.futurefreeport.com.
Take the survey! Share your thoughts so together we can develop a vision for Freeport. Visit the project website to complete the survey online or if you prefer a paper copy, stop by Town Hall or give us a call at (207)865-4743, option 5.
Join the conversation at our first community workshop on June 12th at 6pm at the Freeport Community Center. Come hear what we have learned as we’ve compiled data from the past decade and review initial results from the community survey!
“We hope all Freeport residents will find time to participate in this process, whether that’s by joining us in person on June 12th or at another community workshop, taking the survey on our website, or even just signing up for the mailing list to stay in the know. This is the community’s plan, and there’s lots of excitement and momentum in town as we take stock of where we are and explore the possibilities for our future. Although the Planning Board is excited to lead the process, we want to hear from as many people as possible as we shape the vision together for our next decade—and beyond!” – Sam Kapala, Chairperson, Freeport Planning Board
For more information about the Comprehensive Plan process, the upcoming community workshop, to take the survey and/or review the draft of the data collected from the past decade, please visit the project website at www.futurefreeport.com. You can also contact the Planning Department at (207) 865-4743, option 5 or contact Caroline Pelletier, Town Planner, at cpelletier@freeportmaine.com. As always, please feel free to stop by the Planning Department at Town Hall anytime during normal business hours with any questions or comments.