ROCKLAND — Birds need not fear the partially-reflective glass façade of the Starfire five-story art management building, slated for groundbreaking in April 2016 and completion in March 2017. After fielding concerns by the Rockland Planning Board over the general frequency of bird strikes against windows, site designer Eric Allyn has found a solution.

A type of reflective glass exists that is etched with patterns unseen by the human eye, but visible to the avian species. These patterns, at least in theory, are enough to signal to the birds that what they are flying toward is not open sky.

The question remaining is which of the two available pattern options to choose.

On Tuesday, Nov. 17, Planning Board members unanimously approved all aspects of the proposed Dowling Walsh art gallery and storage facility, including an open-rooftop design with vegetation, and a rooftop machinery decibel of 66. When pressed on what a 66-decibel sound is, Allyn used a comparison chart equating the noise level to overhearing a conversation from three feet away.

Despite the unanimous vote, board members expressed their frustration with the ambiguity of the city’s zoning ordinances.

As board member Peta VanVuuren said during the meeting, the wording of the zoning ordinances allows for “reasonable people to come to different interpretations.”

According to VanVuuren, CMCA and ADZ (the new hotel across from Harbor Park) both inferred similarly in their interpretations, while Allyn inferred differently.

Board member Charlie Jordan, Jr., approved the Dowling-Walsh proposal because it was a “very nice design”, but also because the ordinance requirements were too subjective to deny.

 Related stories

Proposed Dowling-Walsh building plans vetted by Rockland planning board

Five-story Winter Street art management gallery gets under review by Rockland planning board

Dowling-Walsh Gallery proposes five-story building in downtown Rockland

Reach Sarah Thompson at news@penbaypilot.com.