Wedding Cake House inn proposal moves forward despite opposition
KENNEBUNK, Maine — A proposed contract zone to allow the historic Wedding Cake House to become an inn and an events venue gained a key approval this week.
The town's Planning Board voted 4-1 Monday, Nov. 13, to advance the application to the Kennebunk Select Board with a positive recommendation to place the contract zone on the ballot.
The recommendation, however, has conditions, including that the venue would be limited to 20 outdoor “tented” events per year, and owners would have to notify the town's police and code enforcement departments of each occasion.
Wedding Cake House owners Hunt and Katie Edwards had said events at the venue would have an attendance cap of 150 people. On Thursday, Nov. 16, however, Hunt Edwards said events would not always reach that level of attendance and indeed would often have no more than around 100 guests.
Richard Smith, the lone board member to vote against recommending the contract zone, asked that his reasons be included with the recommendation sent to the Select Board.
Smith took issue with the main reason why the Edwardses are seeking to turn the home into a commercial enterprise. The couple has said they want to create a revenue stream to help with the costly work of rehabilitating and replacing the structure's wedding cake-like trim and columns.
“Other than the cost of the trim, the cost to maintain the Wedding Cake House is no different than many other historical homes in the town,” Smith said.
Smith also took issue with how, if ultimately approved by voters, the contract zone would be in perpetuity, in place as a revenue stream long after the home is fully restored.
Wedding Cake opponents reiterate concerns about project
Prior to the Planning Board's vote, several people reiterated concerns about the potential impacts that an inn and an events venue could have on the Summer Street neighborhood.
Attorney Georgia Buldoc, of Pierce Atwood, spoke out against the project on behalf of the Friends of the Wedding Cake House, a new group formed in opposition to the home becoming an inn.
Bolduc said the proposal was “short-sighted,” a threat to Summer Street, inconsistent with the town's land-use zoning and comprehensive plan, and at odds with the historic overlay district in which the house is located.
“On the same street where the Wedding Cake House is located, there are at least 15 other captains' houses that are just as large and historically significant and just as costly,” Bolduc stated. “Those other houses have not asked for contract zones.”
One member of the public, Tony Cohutt, a friend of the Edwardses, spoke of their character and offered his support for the project.
Cohutt said events at the Wedding Cake House would draw people from all over the country and the world. He said such likely affluent individuals would stay at local hotels, dine at local restaurants, and visit local shops – all of which would help the town's economy and the people who live in Kennebunk.
“They are wonderful people,” Cohutt said of the Edwards couple. “They have pure hearts and really do think in terms of goodness for the community. They would not be doing this if they didn't think it was good for Kennebunk.”
Beyond Cohutt's remarks, however, the public comments were in opposition and focused on concerns about noise, traffic, preserving the character of the neighborhood, the proper application of a contract zone, and the chance that one approved contract zone on Summer Street could lead to more.
David Allen, a Summer Street resident, told the Planning Board he had more than 30 years of experience in the hospitality industry and worked at “countless weddings.” Allen spoke of all the logistics and impacts of holding an event involving live entertainment, food and beverages, and as many as 150 guests.
“I can assure you there is nothing about a 150seat wedding that is intimate or reserved,” he said. “The impact of creating such a large facility on residences encircling it cannot be overstated.”
What's next for Wedding Cake House proposal
The Select Board will now decide whether to place the issue on the ballot for the state primary in early March.
The board could decide to hold a public hearing on the matter on Jan. 9, 2024, according to Town Planner Brittany Howard.
If the Select Board votes in the affirmative and if voters approve of the new zone at the ballot booth, the Edwardses would still need to go through the town's planning process.
Planning board members and attorney Gregory Braun, who represents the Edwardses, both made this point in response to concerns raised by residents.
To date, the Edwardses have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on renovating and strengthening the structure of the Wedding Cake House and its barn and carriage house, according to Hunt Edwards. The Edwardses live above the barn.
Working with Braun, the Edwardses have spent much of the year going through the town's planning process, revising their proposal on several occasions, attending Planning Board meetings, and getting feedback from residents during a first public hearing in July.
With legal expenses mounting and the clock ticking toward the day of the primary in March, Hunt Edwards publicly has expressed frustration with the process, at one point suggesting he should just sell the Wedding Cake House and move on.
The structure is formally known as the George W. Bourne House and gets its nickname from its wedding cakelike appearance. According to local legend, Bourne, a sea captain and shipbuilder, had the house built in 1825 to “atone for having not taken his bride, Jane, on a proper honeymoon.”
The home has been restored on several occasions, such as back in 1984. James Hunt Barker – Hunt Edwards' uncle – bought the house in 1998. Hunt Edwards began renovating it in 2019.