FARMINGTON — Planning board members are worried that a plan for an apartment building on Fairbanks Road could contaminate the town’s drinking water, prompting them to delay a decision on approving the project.

Developers Byron Davis and Bill Marceau, owners of Farmington Land LLC, are planning a 32-unit building at 247 Fairbanks Road, just a mile north of downtown Farmington.

Some residents and water company officials have said the project’s storm water management plan would threaten a town well in the Sandy River, where storm water runoff from the development would flow.

The complaints led to the planning board last week deciding to table any votes until the state Department of Environmental Protection reviews the project. The board will revisit the project’s permit applications at their meeting on May 14.

Resident Brad Smith has also raised questions about how the town’s wellhead protection ordinance should affect the project, which falls within the designated protection zones. He said it’s unclear whether the plan follows stricter guidelines established by the ordinance.

Smith, 64, and his wife, Juanita Bean-Smith, own Bean & Smith Real Estate, with their office building directly in front of the proposed project site. He submitted a list of concerns to the planning board last week about the project, addressing everything from drinking water contamination to project funding.

Farmington Village Corporation, the water company serving the community, plans to further review the project and last week asked the planning board to delay its votes. Among the concerns raised by the utility’s board was the uncertainty about the plan following the town’s wellhead protection ordinance.

The environmental protection agency review of the project, which requires a permit from the state agency to move forward, should address most of the concerns tied to water contamination issues, the utility stated in a letter to the town planning board.

Tom Greer, project engineer for the developers, told the planning board the development plan follows state regulations for treating storm water runoff. He is with Pinkham & Greer, consulting engineers of Portland.

The plan consists of using a system known as a wet pond, which treats the storm water by changing the temperature and catching some sediment and chemicals before it reaches the river, Greer said. He added that the system is common among similar projects statewide.

The state environmental protection agency permit for the project would have to be renewed once every five years, following a review of the storm water treatment system, he said.

The developers have said the proposed apartment building called Brookside Village addresses a lack of housing for elderly and low income people in the community.

The building, which is expected to cost $4 million to construct, would accept residents who are at least 62 years old, or disabled, and meet annual income guidelines, the developers said. For instance, a single person must have an income of less than $29,150 per year to qualify.

Voters at the annual Town Meeting last month approved the developers’ request for help securing a $500,000 federal grant to extend public infrastructure to the site. The Community Development Block Grant, which is awarded to the town, was approved last week to extend a road and public utilities to the site.

The developers also plan to build another 55 condominiums for residents ages 55 and above at the site, with no income guidelines, according to Davis, who owns Riverbend Property Management. That project has already been approved by the town planning board and is waiting for funding to move forward, he said.

The other developer, Marceau, owns Foothills Management, which is another property management company that competes with Riverbend in the area. He is also a member of the planning board and recused himself from board actions taken on the matter.

David F. Robinson — 861-9287

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