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View Full Version : 400,000 acre subdivision to abut AT in Maine



weary
12-16-2004, 00:31
Plum Creek, a giant land investment company, has announced a massive development for half of it's 900,000 Maine acres, some of which abut the Appalachian Trail in Maine.

Both plans and details are sketchy but the broad outline can be read at:

http://www.bangornews.com/news/templates/?a=105067

The acreage involves some of the wildest remaining portions of what used to be seen as the Maine "wildlands," including quite a few miles abutting the Appalachian Trail near Whitecap in Maine's 100-mile-wilderness.

Weary

Mountain Dew
12-16-2004, 00:45
That is terrible news, but what is the difference between that and what the amc is eventually going to do to the mass acres that they purchased in the Maine woods ? I see no difference. A hut here ..a hut there....paved parking lots for the Bostonians that power the amc to park on...yeah it will happen.

Both are terrible...

Rocks 'n Roots
12-16-2004, 02:04
Any comments from our "legal"-minded members?


As I recently said, the federal government should be sued for failing to protect the Maine wilderness. These lands were prime acquisition lands because they were paper company property. They were some of the most available of any of the lands the AT ever acquired.


Well, this will make the "AT isn't wild anyway" windmill airheads happy...

Fiddleback
12-16-2004, 09:47
Plum Creek, once referred to as the "Darth Vader of timber companies" by the Wall Street Journal, does this in other states too. Here in MT they have cut heavily and quickly and are now selling much of their property. The company has become more a real estate company than a timber company.

One hope for the future of the lands is a state buy out or a purchase by an organization such as the Nature Conservancy but...

FB

Tim Rich
12-16-2004, 10:53
I read the heading of this article and tried to grasp the concept: a 400,000 acre subdivision. How in the world could something of that scale fly from a financial perspective in the north woods? A reading of the article indicates the residential development will be 5,000 acres (over thirty years) and the total developed land (residence, recreational and business) is five percent of the 380,000 acres. A 37,000 acre conservation easement in 100 Mile Wilderness along the AT is proposed. AMC has endorsed the development plan.

steve hiker
12-16-2004, 11:13
5,000 acres of backyard floodlights in the Maine wilderness? At least we won't be tripping on those rocks and roots when the sun goes down anymore.

Not to mention the roads, shopping centers, street and parking lot lights, office malls, and other eyesores in a former wilderness. You don't have to develop all 400,000 acres to destroy a wilderness.

weary
12-16-2004, 11:16
I read the heading of this article and tried to grasp the concept: a 400,000 acre subdivision. How in the world could something of that scale fly from a financial perspective in the north woods? A reading of the article indicates the residential development will be 5,000 acres (over thirty years) and the total developed land (residence, recreational and business) is five percent of the 380,000 acres. A 37,000 acre conservation easement in 100 Mile Wilderness along the AT is proposed. AMC has endorsed the development plan.
It's not the best written newspaper story. The development will occur much quicker than 30 years. I'm still investigating, but I think the 30 years refers to the length of time the proposed conservation easement will be in effect.
After that land conserved would also be eligible for development.

It's also important to keep the proposal in perspective of what already exists. Currently only 10,000 people live in the half of Maine, 10 million acres, with no organized towns.

The Plum Creek development will be in the wildest portion of the unorganized lands, but assume for argument that the planned development is typical of the whole, that means only 400 people now live in an area that is planned to have 800 to 1,200 new homes and two luxury resorts.

BTW the comparison with AMC is not valid. The last time I was at the AMC Highland Center neither the parking lot nor the driveway was paved. Nor is the parking lot at Little Lyford Pond Camps, AMC's first Maine development, paved. In fact the parking lot is a muddy, grassy knoll. People visiting the area aren't allowed to even drive to their cabins. All are expected to walk the 600 feet or so, carrying their lugggage -- though AMC does supply a rickety garden cart for those without backpacks. All the AMC discussions so far have pointed towards all the AMC facilities being at least a mile from the nearest road.

All of the Plum Creek development, I'm quite sure will be drive in.

Weary

weary
12-16-2004, 12:03
That is terrible news, but what is the difference between that and what the amc is eventually going to do to the mass acres that they purchased in the Maine woods ? I see no difference. A hut here ..a hut there....paved parking lots for the Bostonians that power the amc to park on...yeah it will happen. Both are terrible...
Here"s what the Lewiston Sun, Maine's third largest newspaper had to say in an editoria this morning:

"Questions. Questions. Questions.

Plum Creek Timber Co. released the outlines of a major development plan for the Moosehead region Tuesday. It's an ambitious plan that, if approved, would change the character of the area forever.

There are three big parts to the Plum Creek plan. It would establish a 30-year forest management program for more than 415,000 acres, create conservation easements around more than 50 pristine lakes and ponds while also dedicating land to snowmobile and hiking trails, and open up in the neighborhood of 14,000 acres for development, including new houses, two resorts, an industrial park and affordable housing in Greenville. The exact amount of land for development hasn't been determined.

Along with the release of the development plan, the Seattle-based Plum Creek also announced that it will purchase 48,500 acres from Hancock Timber Resource Group, bringing its total land holdings in Maine to 953,000 acres.

The scale of the proposed development is unprecedented in Maine, and could include 800 to 1,200 new houses, two 3,000-acre resorts, 74.5 miles of snowmobile trails, 43 miles of hiking and cross-country ski trails, and the opportunity for the state to purchase a significant conservation tract.

Before moving forward with its plans, Plum Creek must get approval from the state's Land Use Regulation Commission. According to company President and CEO Rick Holley, a plan will be submitted to LURC by the end of January. Review and approval would be a major undertaking for the agency.

There are things to like about the general outline of Plum Creek's plan. It could bring much-needed economic activity to Greenville and the surrounding area, expanding the tax base and providing new jobs.

But until the actual details are filed with LURC, it's impossible to judge the plan's impact.

Questions remain about the exact location of proposed building, which ponds would be protected and whether the conservation and trail easements are as permanent as Plum Creek touts."

Blue Jay
12-16-2004, 12:23
That is terrible news, but what is the difference between that and what the amc is eventually going to do to the mass acres that they purchased in the Maine woods ? I see no difference. A hut here ..a hut there....paved parking lots for the Bostonians that power the amc to park on...yeah it will happen.

Both are terrible...

Odd that you, of all people would call this terrible. Your hero Adolf Bush placed Rebecca Watson as Assistant Interior Secretary for Land and Minerals. She has worked directly for Plum Creek Timber and many other companies regulated by the agency she now heads. She has often successfully blocked payments for environmental damage that resulted from their exploitive practices. You are a hypocrite, no matter how you spell it. Also an amazingly ignorant individual.

Tim Rich
12-16-2004, 12:38
Odd that you, of all people would call this terrible. Your hero Adolf Bush placed Rebecca Watson as Assistant Interior Secretary for Land and Minerals. She has worked directly for Plum Creek Timber and many other companies regulated by the agency she now heads. She has often successfully blocked payments for environmental damage that resulted from their exploitive practices. You are a hypocrite, no matter how you spell it. Also an amazingly ignorant individual.

Nine posts until an unsolicited personal attack. Nice.

Agency appointments from the industry they will monitor or regulate are not unique to Republican administrations. It makes sense, but I sense you were just looking to take a shot.

TJ aka Teej
12-16-2004, 12:51
Statement of Cathy Johnson, North Woods Project Director, Natural Resources Council of Maine www.nrcm.org (http://www.nrcm.org)

Response to Plum Creek Development
Proposal Announced Today


December 14, 2004

The Moosehead Lake area is gem for the local community, for people across the state, and nationally. There is nothing that we would like better than to see this area of the state permanently protected. The spectacular mountaintops, undeveloped ponds and remote forests of the North Woods are part of Maine’s heritage and should be preserved so that future generations may enjoy them. It is the beautiful, undeveloped forest land that is the backbone of the region's forest products and tourism economy.

We are very happy about Plum Creek's decision to enter into negotiations with the State for acquisition of portions of the land and hope that those discussions will be successful.

Plum Creek’s development proposal for 400,000 acres of land raises some very important questions. The scale of the proposal is without precedent in the state of Maine.

It is possible that the development will include more than 800 new house lots, 5 – 10 times more house lots than the biggest proposal ever reviewed by LURC. This scale of development could change the character of the Moosehead region forever. This is a turning point in the history of Maine’s North Woods.

Based on the average rate of development of new homes in LURC jurisdiction, we would expect to see about 250 new homes in an area of this size over the next 30 years.

The location of the proposed development also raises questions. It appears that much of the proposed development will be on lakes, ponds and river frontage, miles from Greenville. Given that Plum Creek owns another 550,000 acres south of Greenville, it is unclear why the more remote areas were chosen for development instead of those areas closer to municipal services.

LURC law requires that any development of this scale be balanced by comparable conservation. Development is permanent. However, the vast majority of the proposed conservation is not permanent. The conservation proposed in this plan should be permanent. Plum Creek has told us that they intend that the conservation be permanent but they have not yet proposed a way to ensure that permanence. We look forward to working with them to ensure that the conservation in this proposal is forever.

Another issue of concern is the 500,000 acres that is not included in this proposal. All of that land will remain vulnerable to development.

Blue Jay
12-16-2004, 13:33
Agency appointments from the industry they will monitor or regulate are not unique to Republican administrations. It makes sense, but I sense you were just looking to take a shot.

True, I never question Republican tactics (that was sarcasm). You are also correct about the Democrats, who are very good at it. Which only makes sense since they both are bought and paid for.