Bow residents will have the chance to weigh in tonight on a zoning proposal that could bring in 80 acres worth of new development.
The proposal would affect the “Bow Mills” area around Exit 1 on Interstate 89, according to Bow’s Director of Community Development Matt Taylor, and was drafted as a way to expand the town’s tax base and allow for high-value development in near to I-89 and I-93. Most of the land is currently undeveloped and zoned for residential or institutional use.
Taylor said the zoning change would allow developers to be more flexible in where they can place buildings, as mixed-use zoning allows for buildings to be placed closer to streets than residential zoning. It would also encourage developers to build up – buildings are currently allowed to be up to 55 feet high and only cover 60 percent of the lot.
Ideally, Taylor said the zoning would create a sort of downtown area for the town, with services residents need along with potentially some regional stores. The proposal covers a wide range of possibilities: hotels, restuarants, medical facilities, movie theaters and residential units, to name a few, would be allowed under mixed-use zoning.
Places such as day cares, schools and social clubs would also be allowed under the new zoning, but as a special exception, according to town documents. Those uses would not be allowed to cover more than 50 percent of the floor space.
Taylor said the town is hoping to get the zoning change approved sooner rather than later, preferably before the state’s Department of Transportation begins its 10-year highway plan, which would possibly include widening I-93 to six lanes in the area of exits 14 and 15 and revamping Exit 1 on I-89, which connects with Logging Hill Road in Bow. He said the town could accomplish what it wants with the region prior to the highway project’s beginning in 2024.
The public hearing is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the town hall, located at 10 Grandview Road in Bow.