Eliot Planning Board Advances Starboard Cove Pier Permit to Public Hearing

The Eliot Planning Board voted to find a Starboard Cove Road pier application complete and scheduled a public hearing for October 20, after the applicant clarified a discrepancy in the pier's length. The board also approved minutes and a notice of decision, and discussed proposed ordinance changes and a possible joint effort with the Conservation Commission on water reuse.

Key points

• The board voted unanimously to find application PB 26-07, a shoreland zoning permit for a pier, gangway, and float at 44 Starboard Cove Road, complete and ready for a public hearing on October 20.
• Engineer Jay Obie of TF Moran said the existing pier is about 44 feet long, not 50 feet as described, and that the project is a slight expansion rather than a strict replacement in kind; the board agreed the corrected overall length is 120 feet to match the state application.
• The board approved the September 1, 2026 minutes as amended, with several wording and formatting corrections.
• The board approved an amended notice of decision for PB 26-06, a new residential pier, gangway, and float.
• Planner Dawn Emerson presented draft ordinance language on meeting end times, abutter notice by first-class mail, sketch plan requirements, and daycare provisions; no decisions were made.
• Chair discussed attending a Conservation Commission meeting to explore gray water and stormwater reuse for the mixed-use zone, and the board supported him representing it.

Next steps

• Public hearing on PB 26-07 set for the October 20 regular meeting.
• Planner to bring daycare ordinance language to the October 20 meeting for discussion at a November workshop.
• Chair to attend the Conservation Commission meeting to raise gray water and stormwater reuse, then report back.
• Audio levels for Zoom and podium microphone issues to be passed along to the system programmer.

Read the full transcript