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Fish River Chain of Lakes Concept Plan
Zoning Petition ZP 768
Last Updated: October 3, 2019
This web page is a source of information about the Commission's concept plan program, including the Commission's review criteria and process of evaluating concept plans and details about the Commission's review of Zoning Petition ZP 768, a petition from Irving Woodlands LLC (Irving) to rezone approximately 51,000 acres of its ownership in northern Aroostook County to a Resource Plan Protection (P-RP) Subdistrict in order to implement a concept plan. The documents on this site are available for downloading in either Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF file format. Many of these documents are also available by postal mail upon request by contacting LUPC's office in Augusta (call 207-287-2631 or email LUPC@maine.gov).
Please note that the Commission is no longer accepting public comments on Zoning Petition ZP 768.
Final Commission Decision
On September 11, 2019, the Land Use Planning Commission voted unanimously to accept Zoning Petition ZP 768, a petition from Irving Woodlands LLC (Irving) to rezone 51,000 acres of its ownership in northern Aroostook County to a Resource Plan Protection (P-RP) Subdistrict and make effective the attendant Fish River Chain of Lakes Concept Plan.
Many of these documents are available for downloading in Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF). If you cannot open these files, download the free Adobe Reader® software for viewing and printing PDF files.
| Commission Decision and Final Concept Plan |
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| Commission Decision in the Matter of Zoning Petition ZP 768 (PDF 430KB) - The Commission's September 11, 2019 decision sets forth the basis for the Commission's conclusion that the Concept Plan satisfies all governing review criteria. This file includes Attachment A: Full Administrative History. Attachment B (the Concept Plan) is available as a separate document. |
| Attachment B: Fish River Chain of Lakes Concept Plan (PDF 14MB) |
| Additional Resources |
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| Frequently Asked Questions (PDF 142KB) – A short collection of frequently asked questions and brief responses. |
| Excerpts Regarding License Lots and Access (PDF 154KB) – Excerpts of the concept plan regarding License Lots and Access. |
Concept Plans and the Commission's Criteria for Approval
Concept plans are landowner-created, long-range plans for the development and conservation of a large area. These plans are a clarification of long-term landowner intent that indicate, in a general way, the areas where development is to be focused, the relative density of proposed development, and the means by which significant natural and recreational resources are to be protected. The Commission established the concept plan process as a flexible alternative to traditional subdivision and development regulation, designed to accomplish both public and private objectives. Concept plans are initiated by a landowner and must be approved by the Commission.
Concept plans are implemented by rezoning land to a Resource Plan Protection (P-RP) Subdistrict. Consequently, the key regulatory review criteria for concept plans are the Commission's statutory criteria for rezoning and the Commission's Land Use Districts and Standards. The Commission's Comprehensive Land Use Plan also describes concept plans in its discussion of the Commission’s lake management program. The statutes and rules containing the criteria for approval and other reference material are summarized in the following table.
Project Information and Chronology
| Date | Project Update or Event | Additional Information |
|---|---|---|
| 9/26/2019 | Commission Decision in the Matter of Zoning Petition ZP 768 | |
| 8/29/2019 | Staff Recommendation |
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| 8/21/2019 | Final Commitments and Statements |
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| 8/5/2019 | Eighth Procedural Order |
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| 8/14/2019 | Staff Suggested Edits |
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| 7/1/2019 | Written Comments – Intervenors and Interested Persons |
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| 6/7/2019 | Revised Petition (Note: This revised plan supersedes prior versions) |
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| 6/7/2019 | Governmental Agency Comments |
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| 5/17/2019 | Seventh Procedural Order |
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| 7/13/2018 | Written Comments [The following documents include all written comments submitted between the closing of the comment period noon on June 22 through noon on July 13.] |
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| 6/22/2018 | Written Comments [The following documents include all written comments submitted between the hearing and the closing of the comment period on June 22.] |
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| 5/22/2018 - 5/24/2018 | Public Hearing The following document includes hyperlinks to all audio files, visual aids, and handouts that were part of the public hearing. | Hearing Record (PDF 113KB) |
| 5/16/2018 | Hearing Resources | Reference Sheets
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| 5/11/2018 | Sixth Procedural Order | Procedural Order (PDF 148KB) |
| 5/2/2018 | Petitioner Pre-filed Testimony | Irving
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| 5/2/2018 | Intervenor Pre-Filed Testimony | Fish River Lakes Leaseholders Association
Forest Society of Maine Natural Resources Council of Maine |
| 5/2/2018 | Governmental Agency Pre-Filed Comments |
Aroostook County Commissioners (PDF 350KB) Bureau of Parks and Lands (PDF 291KB) Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (PDF 251KB) Maine Forest Service (PDF 5.7MB) Maine Department of Environmental Protection (PDF 203KB) Town of Van Buren (PDF 50KB) |
| 4/27/2018 | Hearing Notice |
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| 4/12/2018 | Petition Amendment (Note: These materials have been superseded by the June 7, 2019 filing.) |
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| 4/9/2018 | Fifth Procedural Order |
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| 3/29/2018 | Petition Amendment [NOTE: The updates and revisions described in the outline will be posted on the web April 13th] |
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| 3/16/2018 | Fourth Procedural Order |
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| 12/12/2017 through 2/28/2018 | Governmental Agency Comments Received to Date |
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| 12/29/2017 | Interested Persons Issues Lists |
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| 12/11/2017 | Intervenor Issues Lists |
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| 11/1/2017 through 3/20/2018 | Governmental Agency and Service Provider Comments Received to Date (NOTE: See other similar items listed for 09/13/2017 through 10/31/2017 entry) |
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| 11/1/2017 through 12/11/2017 | Public Comments | Public Comments (PDF 15KB) |
| 11/17/2017 | Third Procedural Order | Procedural Order (PDF 58KB) |
| 11/2/2017 | Second Procedural Order | Procedural Order (PDF 55KB) |
| 9/13/2017 through 10/31/2017 | Governmental Agency and Service Provider Comments Received to Date | |
| 10/19/2017 | First Procedural Order | Procedural Order (PDF 83KB) |
| 10/6/2017 | Commissioner Meeting and Public Site Visit |
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| 9/6/2017 | Hearing Notice | Hearing Notice (PDF 41KB) |
| 9/6/2017 | Commission Response – Commission finds the petition is complete for processing | Commission Memo (PDF 165KB) |
| 8/9/2017 | Commission Meeting(Hearing determination and designation of presiding officer) | Meeting Record (PDF 98KB) |
| 6/1/2017 | Petition Amendment Filed with the LUPC |
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| 3/13/2015 | Commission Response – (Commission staff notified the applicant that additional application materials were needed in order to find the petition complete for processing.) | |
| 12/31/2014 |
Petition Filed with the LUPC (NOTE: This submission has been superseded by the 6/1/2017 submission, and again by the 6/7/2019 submission.) |
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| Notice of Filing of Rezoning Petition | Notice of Filing (PDF 456 KB) | |
| 10/09/2013 |
Pre-application presentation to Commission |
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| 06/12/2013 | Pre-application presentation to Commission |
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