DoomsdaysCW<p>[Video + gift article] Plan to extend turnpike through <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/farmland" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" 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 noreferrer" 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 noreferrer" 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 noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SouthPortlandMaine</span></a> to the <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/GorhamBypass" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" 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 noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>TrafficCongestion</span></a> and exacerbate <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/pollution" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>pollution</span></a> and other <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/environmental" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" 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 noreferrer" 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 noreferrer" 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 noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>BrookTrout</span></a>.</p><p>"Sadie Donnell, a <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/GorhamMaine" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" 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 noreferrer" 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 noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SaveSmilingHill</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/GorhamConnector" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>GorhamConnector</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/GorhamSpur" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>GorhamSpur</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Maine" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Maine</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/MaineTurnpikeAuthority" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>MaineTurnpikeAuthority</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/RapidTransit" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>RapidTransit</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/LightRail" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>LightRail</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/SaveTheFarms" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SaveTheFarms</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/ProtectTheForest" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ProtectTheForest</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/InducedDemand" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>InducedDemand</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Sprawl" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Sprawl</span></a></p>