04-22-2019 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday, April 8, 2019 7:00 o’clock p.m. __________________________________________________________________________________ 16. LA19-000011 JULIE LENSING, 3349 CRYSTAL BAY ROAD Barnhart stated the applicant is requesting a variance in order to construct an 18’ x 18’ addition on the rear of the existing home resulting in a setback from the rear lot line of approximately 1.2 inches. The existing hardcover level is 42.9 percent. The proposed addition will be constructed over an existing patio so no new hardcover is proposed. Due to the change in the nature of the nonconforming hardcover, which is an expansion from non-building to building, a hardcover variance is required. The Hennepin County Regional Rail Authority is the property owner to the rear or south. Both Staff and the property owners have discussed this project with Jessica Galatz, the HCRRA representative. Ms. Galatz indicated that the applicant’s agreement to remove the shed encroachment and the applicant’s changes to the plans in response to Roger Peitso’s comments help to alleviate their concerns with the application. In addition, Ms. Galatz indicated that the proposed grading for the addition and future home maintenance can be accommodated through temporary access permits. The applicant did ask whether she could purchase some additional property but the HCRRA was not in favor of that. The Planning Commission reviewed this application at their March meeting and voted 4 to 2 in favor of a motion to approve the requested variances. Staff does not support the variance reducing the rear yard setback from 7.4 feet to 0.1 feet. In Staff’s view, the burden of proof to present practical difficulties to support that level of variance has not been met. The City Council should discuss the application and then make a motion directing Staff to draft a resolution for approval or provide findings for a denial resolution to be reviewed and adopted at the April 22 meeting. Julie Lensing, Applicant, stated she has lived in the house for almost four years now and that she loves the lake, the Dakota Trail, and would like to stay living in the house. She has come to a point where there are some difficulties that have arisen. The laundry room is located in the garage currently, which requires taking a laundry basket and going down one-half flight of stairs, out one door, and then through another door to gain access. Lensing indicated she is getting older and that it will get more difficult. Lensing stated the other item is that she is getting married next month and between the two of them they have six adult children. Those adult children are going to start having children soon and that she would like to have them come to visit and be able to spend the night periodically. As the house currently is, the number of beds is very limited and that she is proposing a bunk room with two sets of beds to accommodate more of her family. The third practical difficulty is the closet in the master bedroom. The current closet has a two-foot opening and that is it, which means the closet space is very limited. The addition would put the laundry room up on the main level, would provide four more potential beds, and also provide a small walk-in closet. Lensing noted she is talking about an 8’ x 18’ addition. Lensing indicated they have looked at a lot of different options and that this plan is the best they can come up with given the small lot. The addition will be built over a current patio and line up with the deck. There was some discussion at the Planning Commission that if the addition was any smaller, bunk beds would not fit in there. Lensing noted her neighbor supports this addition. The Hennepin County Rail Authority has approved a temporary permit for the construction and the maintenance. The architect will also be able to change the plans to comply with all of the concerns expressed by the Orono building code official. In addition, a small shed on HCRRA’s property will be removed as part of the project. The addition will make the house much more livable and enjoyable.