03-08-2010 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday, March 8, 2010 7:00 o'clock p.m. ( #10 -3442 THEEMILYPROGR", 2180NORTHSHOREDRIVE, Continued) Geri Scherer, 15 Orono Orchard Road, stated she has exchanged e -mails with Shari Danielson and spoke with Aaron Printup. Scherer indicated she does not live close to the Hill School, but that she would like the Council to know that Mr. Printup put something in her mailbox covered with labels, such as runaways, attempted suicide victims, etc. In addition, Mr. LeQuay has talked about biohazard removal and frequent ambulance runs to the site. Scherer noted she is a licensed psychologist and also suffered from an eating disorder in her early 20s. Scherer stated she finds those types of labels appalling. Scherer stated she supports the Hill School site for the Emily Program, and pointed out that, as Mr. Cooper said earlier tonight, something is going to go in that site. Being that it is zoned for a school, it could be an alternative school or an English Secondary Language program, and that the residents should be careful for what they wish for. Judy Blue, 2160 Crystal Avenue, stated she has lived in this neighborhood since 1979. Blue stated that this neighborhood is not your typical residential neighborhood. It consists of houses that are small and located close to the road and the streets are very narrow. Blue commented she likes her neighborhood that way because it is very homey and cabin like. Almost any day of the week you can go there and see little kids in the streets playing with dogs and on their tricycles and bicycles. Blue reiterated that this is not your average residential neighborhood. Blue noted she has two daughters in their 20s, and if she were to pick a location for this facility, she would not pick this neighborhood but would rather pick one with a coffee shop, a cafe, and • college students their own age. Amy Blecker, 1380 Arbor Lane, stated she would like to focus on the so- called survey and the data that was presented at the last meeting. Blecker encouraged the City Council to rethink how much weight they give to the survey. Blecker stated she apparently was included as part of the survey but that she had no idea that she was surveyed. Blecker stated there should be more of a random sampling, and that her guess is that the people who did the survey was a group of people who were opposed to the facility, found other people opposed to the facility, and that they assigned names as being for or against it without actually surveying them. Blecker suggested the City Council question the validity of the survey because in her opinion it does not represent a true sampling of the neighborhood. Blecker asked that people stop saying they are in support of the program but not in their neighborhood because in her view you cannot be both. On the one hand it appears that the residents are saying that they know better than the program because they know where it should be located and that they know more than the Planning Commission that voted in favor of the Emily Program. Blecker indicated she lives in the Crystal Bay area and that she does not understand where all these neighbors came from since there are very few houses in that neighborhood. The media attention being drawn to this paints a very negative picture of Orono and the people who live in it. The City Council is responsible for the community's presence and future well being, and that how this looks to the rest of the state should also be considered. People are emotional about this issue, people do want these girls to get help, and that the setbacks are not as important as some of the other issues being discussed. Blecker questioned whether or not there would be this much opposition to a rest home or a hospice center for cancer patients. Blecker stated there is something about this particular program that people don't want in their neighborhood, and that her only guess is that it is perhaps the stigma associated with mental illness, which she • finds very sad. -- { Page 13 of 23