BELFAST — The Belfast City Council will meet for its regularly scheduled meeting Tuesday, May 6, at 7 p.m., to address a variety of topics featured on Belfast City Manager Erin Herbig’s pre-meeting report.

Agenda items include a presentation by the Pedestrian, Transportation, and Accessibility Committee on an Active Transportation plan, a discussion on adult use of retail cannabis, and two parade applications, among other agenda items.

In 2024, the Belfast Pedestrian, Transportation, and Accessibility Committee worked with the Maine Department of Transportation and Street Plans, which is an internationally recognized urban planning, design, architecture, and transportation planning practice, according to Herbig's pre-meeting report.

The plan was funded by the City and with a grant that was awarded through MDOT’s Planning Partnership Initiative. 

“The project's scope encompassed all of Belfast, focusing on Route 1 crossings, facilitating safe connections between urban and rural zones, and expanding active transportation facilities outward from downtown. This plan is intended to guide the creation of safer streets and more dynamic public spaces in the City,” Herbig’s report states. 

If approved by the Council, City staff request that a motion be made to accept the final Active Transportation Plan as presented. 

More detailed information about the plan and impacted locations can be found in Herbig’s pre-meeting report materials. 

Following the presentation there will be a discussion regarding adult use of retail cannabis. 

Councilor Chris Bitely reportedly invited John Hudak and Vernon Malloch, representatives of the State Of Maine Office of Cannabis Policy, to meet with the Council to provide information on adult use of retail cannabis. 

The mission of OCP is: “Ensure the health and safety of all Mainers by effectively and responsibly licensing and regulating cannabis. The Department develops good faith partnerships between the State of Maine and stakeholders by establishing rules and policies that provide interested consumers with access to a regulated industry while diminishing an unregulated market,” according to the pre-meeting report.

The representatives are attending the meeting for a presentation and discussion on municipal adult use opt in. 

Additional information is available in Herbig’s pre-meeting report materials. 

Economic Development Director Thomas Kittredge submitted a request to authorize the development and issuance of a Request for Qualification Statements for Engineering and Design Services for the proposed Congress and Salmon Street Improvement Project. 

According to Herbig’s report, the City has secured $1,990,000 in grant funding to undertake a street improvement project for a section of Congress Street and Salmond Street. Over half of the donation, $1,00,000 was awarded to the City by the Northern Border Regional Commission Catalyst Program, while the remaining $990,000 was awarded by the Community Development Block Grant Infrastructure Program. 

In July 2024, the City applied for $1,721,669 in funding from the MDOT Bicycle and Pedestrian Funding Program, which would be matched with $432,000 in City funds in order to meet the estimated total cost of the project, $4,143,669. 

The City has yet to be awarded the requested construction funds from MDOT, though MDOT has started an account for the project, in which it deposited $54,000, which was matched with $6,000 in City funds, which will be used for the project designs and environmental reviews. 

Victualer License renewal requests from over a dozen of local area businesses have been submitted, in addition to multiple facility use requests, and two requests for parade approvals.

In the Belfast City Charter and Ordinances, a victualer is defined as a person who serves food or drink prepared for consumption on the premises by the public, which requires a license. .

Herbig’s full pre-meeting report and the supporting materials can be viewed on the City’s website. 

Erica Thoms can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com