Opinion ID: 2177470
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Board of Appeals Decision

Text: Total Quality contends that the Superior Court erred in affirming the decision of the Board of Appeals that denied its administrative appeal because the proposed ice cream business does not constitute a change in the nonconforming use of the property. It argues that it was entitled to use the property as a retail ice cream business without Board of Appeals approval. Total Quality had the burden at the administrative level to prove that its proposed use was not a change in the nonconforming use. See C & P Building Ltd. Partnership v. District of Columbia Bd. of Zoning Adjustment, 442 A.2d 129, 133 (D.C.App.1982). Accordingly, Total Quality must demonstrate on appeal not only that the Board's findings are unsupported by record evidence, but also that the record compels contrary findings. Grant's Farm Assocs. v. Town of Kittery, 554 A.2d 799, 801 (Me.1989). The test for determining whether a proposed property use fits within a grandfathered nonconforming use is: (1) whether the use reflects the nature and purpose of the use prevailing when the zoning legislation took effect; (2) whether there is created a use different in quality or character, as well as in degree, from the original use, or (3) whether the current use is different in kind in its effect on the neighborhood. Keith v. Saco River Corridor Comm'n, 464 A.2d 150, 155 (Me.1983). The Board of Appeals found, based on evidence in the record, that the owner of the property prior to Total Quality manufactured clam cakes and clam nuggets, which it sold wholesale to supermarkets and major companies under the name Coast of Maine Products. [3] Although Coast of Maine Products sold some clam cakes to the public during the summer, a retail store was not in general operation on the property and no sales tax was collected on over-the-counter sales. In contrast, the ice cream business proposed by Total Quality would manufacture ice cream on the premises solely for retail sale to the public, a use that falls within the definition of a drive-in restaurant under the zoning ordinance. [4] On the evidence before it, the Board of Appeals was not compelled to find that the retail ice cream business proposed by Total Quality is equivalent to the clam processing and manufacturing business that formerly operated on the property in its nature and purpose, its quality, character and degree, and its effect on the neighborhood. See Keith, 464 A.2d at 155. Accordingly, the record did not compel a finding that the ice cream business would not be a change in the nonconforming use. See Shackford & Gooch, Inc. v. Town of Kennebunk, 486 A.2d 102, 105 (Me.1984) (essential policy of zoning is to eliminate nonconforming uses as soon as possible).