| DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC AND |
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| COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT | | ________ |
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| | Sec. 22. Retroactivity. Those sections of this Act that repeal the | Maine Revised Statutes, Title 30-A, section 4349 and enact Title | 30-A, section 4349-A apply retroactively to state capital | investments made after June 30, 2000. |
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| | This bill implements the recommendations of the Task Force on | State Office Building Location, Other State Growth-related | Capital Investments and Patterns of Development that relate to | land use policy. The bill establishes the Downtown Leasehold | Improvement Fund to assist state agencies in securing space in | downtowns whenever possible by providing for capital improvements | to real property leases and appropriates $800,000 to capitalize | the fund. |
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| | The bill establishes the Maine Downtown Center within the | Department of Economic and Community Development to encourage | downtown revitalization in Maine communities through advocacy, | information, training and technical assistance to communities. |
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| | The bill requires municipalities in which construction | projects for new schools will be located to consider, with the | assistance of the Executive Department, State Planning Office, | priority locations in selecting a school building site. Priority | locations are identified as locally designated growth areas | identified in a comprehensive plan or, in the absence of a | comprehensive plan, areas served by a public sewer system, areas | identified as census designated places or compact areas of urban | compact municipalities. If a municipality does not select a | priority location, state funds may be used for the project only | if the municipality's land use regulations do not prohibit denser | residential development within 1/4 mile of the school property. |
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| | The bill defines state growth-related capital investments and | directs them to locally designated growth areas as identified in | local comprehensive plans, or, if there is no comprehensive plan, | to areas with public sewers capable of handling the development, | to areas identified as census designated places or to compact | areas of urban compact municipalities as defined in | transportation law. Exceptions are made for state investments | required to remedy threats to public health and safety; to | mitigate nonpoint sources of pollution; to purchase land for | parks, open space and | conservation; to assist natural resource-based industries and | other activities that by their |
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