For the Edgecomb Planning Board, it’s a matter that can’t wait until the May town meeting. Residents will vote on a proposed floating house moratorium during a special town meeting within the next 30 days. On Feb. 14, the selectmen voted 2-1 in favor of the planning board’s request to hold a special town meeting.

The planning board and ordinance review committee have struggled in recent months to formulate a plan regulating requests for floating homes. According to Planning Board Vice Chairman and Ordinance Review Committee Chairman Barry Hathorne, the two boards’ biggest challenge is the lack of state regulations on floating houses. Both boards have sought input from the Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Coast Guard and Maine Department of Environmental Protection for guidance in drafting an ordinance, without any success.

“They all told us it’s a local issue,” Hathorne said. “We need this (moratorium) desperately. If we get an application now, it’s too late to stop it.”

The planning board favors a moratorium to provide time to draft an ordinance. According to French, floating houses are a new trend throughout the nation and communities are scrambling to figure out a plan for regulating their existence.

“We have nothing in our land use ordinance pertaining to them. We don’t know how to tax them. Right now, they can hook up to town sewer and water and there is nothing in place governing their existence. A moratorium gives us time to assess the situation. And it gives townspeople a chance to consider where (floating houses) can reside or whether they want them at all,” French said.

The special town meeting will take place about 75 days prior to the May town meeting. Selectman Mike Smith cast the lone dissenting vote against the special town meeting. He cited the additional cost and low voter turnout. Smith believed the annual town meeting in May would be a better forum for the moratorium.

“I’d just as soon wait until May. I’ve never been a fan of special town meetings,” Smith said.

But Selectman Ted Hugger disagreed with his colleague. He was swayed by the planning board leaders’ reasoning for voting on a proposed referendum sooner rather than later. The planning board has heard from one party definitely interested in seeking a permit and fielded two other queries on floating houses.

“I realize the town meeting isn’t that far away, but it sounds like something I’d rather be safe than sorry on,” Hugger said about the possibility of a floating house application being received prior to the May town meeting.

Selectman Jack Sarmanian cast the second vote supporting the special town meeting after polling four budget committee members in the audience. All four supported the moratorium and holding the special town meeting. The selectmen will set a date after conferring with Town Clerk Claudia Coffin. Smith said the date depends upon whether the special town meeting is a referendum or show of hands vote. The selectmen will likely set a public hearing date in two weeks followed by the special town meeting in another two weeks, according to Sarmanian.

In other action, selectmen voted unanimously to change the May town meeting date. The town typically meets the third Saturday of May each year. But Smith requested to move the meeting to May 13 because May 20 conflicts with his daughter Mackenzie Smith’s Maine School of Law graduation in Portland. The date change requires selectmen to finalize all materials for the town report by April 24.

The selectmen will meet next at 6 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 27 in the municipal room.