OXFORD — A public hearing will be held before the Planning Board votes on a site plan application for a 4.3-acre hotel and restaurant development on Route 26.

During their meeting Thursday, Planning Board members voted unanimously to hold the public hearing on Aug. 22, giving Casalinova Development Group, the Oxford company proposing the hotel, enough time to make any necessary changes to its application and receive permits from state agencies.

The board is also requiring CDG to provide the town with a $5,000 retainer for a peer-review escow account to hire Main-Land Development Consultants to review the site plan. 

According to Code Enforcement Officer Rodney Smith, Main-Land’s review and possible recommendations should be ready by Aug. 22. 

The vote followed a half-hour presentation on the project by CDG President Joe Casalinova, Stephen Mohr and Seredin Landscape Architects.

The proposed site for the hotel and restaurant is on farmland owned by Suzanne Hall that sits directly across from Oxford Casino.

Hall’s home, as well as the farm stand, greenhouse and ice cream stand on the property, will remain, Casalinova said.

The developers have yet to select a flag for the new hotel but have been told the building plan will meet the standards of most brands, Mohr said. 

According to the plan presented Thursday, the hotel will be placed alongside Route 26 and the parking lot will be spread down three stepped levels, dropping 15-20 feet of elevation below the highway.

Mohr said storm water management had been a big hurdle for the architects. The plan is to pipe storm water runoff to catch basins then eventually flow it through existing vegetation to a buffer area near the bottom of the hill.

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection has processed the company’s storm water permit application and the company expects to receive the permit soon, Mohr said. 

He estimated that the hotel’s light emission would be 50-60 percent of that of the neighboring Casino. 

Planning Board member Daniel O’Neill questioned if the developers could reorient the site farther north and back from the road, in order to relieve traffic congestion.

Mohr replied that placing the building any farther back would require more structural fill to level the building. The position also assures “appropriate growth potential,” farther to the north, Mohr said. 

A purchase and sale agreement between CDG and Hall for the 4.3 acres was submitted in the site plan application, but board member Stuart Davis noted the acreage does not cover the easements needed for storm water drainage. 

Casalinova said that because it was unknown “what the future may hold,” Hall had retained ownership of the drainage land.

The landowners and developers intended to focus on the current project, Casalinova noted. 

“Our goal is to make this restaurant and hotel a sucessful piece first,” Casalinova told the board. 

The public hearing will be held at 7 p.m. Aug. 22 at the Oxford Town Office.