DoomsdaysCW<p>[Video + gift article] Plan to extend turnpike through <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/farmland" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>farmland</span></a> gets slammed before first public meeting</p><p>The <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/MaineTurnpikeAuthority" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>MaineTurnpikeAuthority</span></a> is hosting a public meeting Monday evening on the <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/GorhamConnector" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>GorhamConnector</span></a>, its plan to build a 5-mile, 4-lane highway spur from the turnpike in <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/SouthPortlandMaine" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>SouthPortlandMaine</span></a> to the <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/GorhamBypass" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>GorhamBypass</span></a>.</p><p>by Kelly Bouchard<br>March 25, 2024</p><p>"Speakers at the press conference said the connector would worsen or simply relocate <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/TrafficCongestion" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>TrafficCongestion</span></a> and exacerbate <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/pollution" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>pollution</span></a> and other <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/environmental" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>environmental</span></a> problems.</p><p>"Warren Knight, one of six siblings involved in the farm, questioned whether the authority chose to build the connector through the farm because it was easier to cross and the cheapest alternative for a project expected to cost well over $200 million.</p><p>"'We don’t think that’s right or fair,' Knight said. 'Why should <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/OpenSpace" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>OpenSpace</span></a> and farmland be considered expendable?”</p><p>"Tuck O’Brien, a Portland resident and representative of Trout Unlimited, a nonprofit that works to preserve and restore fish habitat, said the connector would jeopardize the clean, cool headwaters of <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/RedBrook" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>RedBrook</span></a>, a tributary to Clarks Pond in South Portland that is [one of the last] active habitats for <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/BrookTrout" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>BrookTrout</span></a>.</p><p>"Sadie Donnell, a <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/GorhamMaine" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>GorhamMaine</span></a> resident, said the region’s traffic challenges present a 'huge opportunity' to expand public transportation and reduce the number of cars on the road, rather than move them from one road to another."</p><p><a href="https://www.pressherald.com/2024/03/25/plan-to-extend-turnpike-through-farmland-gets-slammed-before-first-public-meeting/?uuid=8b2a17c3-31d3-4227-bd05-14439d676b71&lid=10425" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">pressherald.com/2024/03/25/pla</span><span class="invisible">n-to-extend-turnpike-through-farmland-gets-slammed-before-first-public-meeting/?uuid=8b2a17c3-31d3-4227-bd05-14439d676b71&lid=10425</span></a></p><p><a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/SaveSmilingHill" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>SaveSmilingHill</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/GorhamConnector" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>GorhamConnector</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/GorhamSpur" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>GorhamSpur</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Maine" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Maine</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/MaineTurnpikeAuthority" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>MaineTurnpikeAuthority</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/RapidTransit" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>RapidTransit</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/LightRail" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>LightRail</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/SaveTheFarms" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>SaveTheFarms</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/ProtectTheForest" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>ProtectTheForest</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/InducedDemand" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>InducedDemand</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Sprawl" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Sprawl</span></a></p>