Erica Brooks v. Town of Bar Harbor, 314 A.3d 205

Erica Brooks and Victoria Smith, property owners in Bar Harbor, challenged the Town’s adoption of a 2021 Land Use Ordinance (LUO) amendment regarding short-term vacation rentals.
The LUO amendment passed by a simple majority (60%) in a town referendum, but the plaintiffs argued a two-thirds supermajority was required due to a Planning Board tie vote.
The relevant LUO provision (requiring a supermajority in certain cases) was not included in the Town’s charter, only in the ordinance itself.
The Superior Court ruled against Brooks and Smith, finding no supermajority requirement; they appealed.
The Maine Municipal Association, as amicus, argued state law required only a simple majority unless the Town charter provided otherwise, which it did not.
The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed the judgment, albeit on different grounds (statutory preemption of the LUO’s supermajority requirement).

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether a supermajority vote was required to pass the LUO amendment	Tie at Planning Board triggered a supermajority vote requirement under LUO	Only a simple majority required by state law and charter	Only a simple majority required by statute; LUO provision unenforceable
Whether MMA’s argument (raised on appeal) could be decided	Not adequately preserved; factual development needed	Argument is purely legal and record is sufficient	Supreme Court considered it as an alternative ground

Yankee Pride Transp. & Logistics, Inc. v. UIG, Inc., 264 A.3d 1248 (Me. 2021) (summary judgment may be affirmed on alternative legal grounds)
Est. of Smith v. Cumberland Cnty., 60 A.3d 759 (Me. 2013) (affirmance on alternative grounds permissible)
Rainey v. Langen, 998 A.2d 342 (Me. 2010) (affirming summary judgment on alternative rationale)