07/15/2013 Planning Commission Minutes

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING Monday,July 15,2013 6:30 o'clock p.m. In addition,the drainage issues have been resolved. Larson stated the neighbors should be controlling their own water and the City should be controlling the water coming off the boulevard. Larson stated they are willing to allow the water from the boulevard run on to this property and that they are willing to work with the City to address the other drainage issues. Larson reiterated it is impossible for this property to flood. As it relates to traffic congestion,Larson noted this will be a two-bedroom house with a tuck-under garage and should not result in significant increased traffic. Larson stated this project will also not result in diminished values to the surrounding properties. Larson indicated this project will cost less than the exterior stone on the house next door and that there is a well on the property. Larson commented he is not sure who wrote the word commons on the plat drawing in the 1980s but that this lot is private property. Larson indicated he does not see how granting the variance would be adverse to the City's Comprehensive Plan since this is a small 26' x 40' foot house. Larson noted they are requesting lot width and lot area variances,which should be a shoo-in since a number of properties in the city have been granted those. Larson indicated they can narrow the house if the City desires. Larson noted the property owners were told they cannot have a dock without a principal structure. If you look at the tax records,it is classified as seasonal recreational. Lots classified as seasonal recreation on Big Island are allowed to have a dock there with no house but yet these folks were denied a dock. Larson stated if they are allowed to build a house,they would like to have a little dock. Larson stated the property owner,Patricia Pfeffer,hired his company to sell the property and the sale is subject to obtaining a permit to construct a house on the land. Larson stated he would encourage the Planning Commission to review the 1978 letter from Mrs. Paige where was begging the City not to do what they did. Mrs. Paige did not have professional representation at the meeting and was unable to personally attend the meeting. The letter clearly states she and her husband owned the property since 1910 and that they never had any flooding on the property. Larson encouraged the Planning Commission to correct the huge injustice that was done in 1978. Schoenzeit stated one of the items the Planning Commission has to decide is whether the proposed house is compatible and fits within the neighborhood. Schoenzeit asked how the applicant would address the compatibility of this house versus the rest of the neighborhood. Larson stated the only house that will see this house is the big mansion. Schoenzeit asked how this house and lot would compare to the rest of the other properties in the neighborhood. Larson indicated he sells cabins across the street from million dollar homes every day around Lake Minnetonka and that they can make the house fit within the setbacks. The proposed house is a nice looking house and is about the size of the neighbor's garage. Larson indicated the plan is not etched in stone and that they will work with the City on the proposal. Larson noted they have constructed this exact same house out in Mound on lots that were only 40 feet wide. Larson indicated they are not going to put a radical, contemporary styled house with a flat roof on the property. The house will be located down on the property and the neighbor on top of the hill will be looking at the side of the garage. Larson stated by all rights they should be attempting to construct a 1,500 square foot print since that is what the law allows for substandard lots. Page 15 of 23