Kevin Steele Jr. left the Wiscasset municipal building Monday night with the OK he was seeking to pile and sell firewood, and praise from a planning board member for what Steele has made of the dormant lot he bought.

Steele said in an interview that he moved his landscaping business from Boothbay to Wiscasset about 13 years ago to be more central to clients. Steele’s Landscaping at 650 Gardiner Road employs about 14 people. Steele said that, before he bought the former campground, the grass there had grown tall.

Board member Deb Pooler remembered. “I’m very proud of you, for bringing the business up as much as you have. It’s amazing what you have done with that,” she told Steele during the board’s brief discussion of his request.

The business he was seeing the board about is called Steele’s Firewood, Steele said. Board members and Town Planner Ben Averill said Steele does not need a building permit until he’s ready to add a building to cover the wood. Steele’s application states it would be a clear-span building over the firewood pile. He has no immediate plans to build it, he said.

He already has a sign permit for the firewood business, according to the application for a site plan review.

Asked later about Pooler’s comments, Steele said: “It really was very nice. It made me feel good.” Board members were also very nice to him when they walked the site for his landscaping business years earlier, he added.

The board sees so many plans for businesses that end up going nowhere, it’s nice to see when one has done well, created jobs and brought a property back as Steele’s has done, Pooler said.

Ordinance Review Committee

With three members showing up Monday night, the ORC fell one short of a quorum. After a wait, Chairman Karl Olson canceled the meeting. The panel will meet next at 5:30 p.m. May 23 at the municipal building.