BRUNSWICK — Brunswick Town Council chairwoman Joanne King has resigned from an advisory group overseeing the construction of a train maintenance facility in Brunswick.
In a March 7 letter to Martin Eisenstein, chairman of the board of the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority (NNEPRA), King said that time constraints led to her decision to leave the advisory panel.
Patricia Quinn, NNEPRA’s executive director, said Wednesday that there are no immediate plans to replace King on the advisory committee, which includes four other local representatives.
District 4 Town Councilor John Perreault and residents Anna Nelson, Dan Sullivan and Bob McEvoy also serve on the advisory group for the planned 60,000- square- foot train facility that would house Downeaster passenger trains overnight for routine maintenance and cleaning.
In her resignation letter, King said she is confident that the work of the advisory group will continue to be effective and that “combined with the commitment from NNEPRA, will result in a facility designed and built to mitigate adverse impacts.”
King did not return a call for comment Wednesday.
Councilors King and Perreault recently co-sponsored an agenda item asking the Town Council to consider drafting a letter that would ask NNEPRA to make specific commitments to adhere to Maine Department of Environmental Protection noise and vibration standards in the construction of the building.
The council voted to table that item. At a subsequent meeting, King did not cosponsor a specific letter, drafted by Perreault, outlining those requests to NNEPRA.
The council voted 5-4 against sending that letter to NNEPRA, with King voting against sending the letter and Perreault voting in favor of sending the letter.
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