04-08-2019 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING Monday, March 18, 2019 6:30 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Tom Rauscher, Applicant, stated they looked to keep this project from being too disruptive, which is why they are proposing to use a portion of the existing foundation. Currently there is no proper terrace there but there was a small little one in the rear corner. There are also the current stone steps. What is being proposed is to have a patio that is livable up on the main floor without having to deal with the garden level or the walkout on the side of the house. Lakeside living is why the Habermans are purchasing this house and they would like to construct the patio as proposed, but they would be willing to utilize pervious material if necessary. Landgraver asked what the dimensions of the porch are. Rauscher noted it is not really a porch but the structure is somewhere around 16’ x 22 or 23 feet. They will be taking the upper portion by the stairs and pushing it out to where the current steps are going down to the grade. Thiesse asked if they are proposing to utilize the existing foundation. Rauscher indicated they are planning to utilize at least three-fourths of it. The front side is going to have an addition put on to it so the front wall of the foundation will be torn out. Chair Thiesse opened the public hearing at 6:38 p.m. There were no public comments. Chair Thiesse closed the public hearing at 6:38 p.m. Landgraver commented everything about the plan is smart but the patio. There is a little bit of massing associated with the house, but the homeowners are making the most out of the space. Landgraver stated in his view the patio is a little bit of a stretch since this is new construction. Ressler indicated he agrees with Commissioner Landgraver and that encroaching further on the lakeshore is something that is generally resisted, especially when there is not a lot of reason for supporting it. Thiesse asked whether the Planning Commissioners would be willing to come to some compromise on the patio. Landgraver stated it is too far lakeward and that he is not sure if it could angle down to the stairs. The proposed patio would be located 61 feet from the lakeshore and that he was trying to reconcile what 61 feet on the western side would look like. From the survey, it looks like it would abut the west side. Thiesse stated that is what he is struggling with and that it does not make a lot of sense to only build half of the patio but that he cannot support what is being proposed. Curtis pointed out the location of the average lakeshore setback line. Erickson stated his understanding is that as proposed there would be 104 square feet beyond the 75-foot line. While that is not a huge number, it is hard to see why it could not be reduced by that amount. If the lower left corner would have more of a rounded corner rather than a square corner, that could eliminate some area, which would bring it more in compliance.