05-08-2017 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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April 5, 2017 PC Exhibit B Dear Mike Gaffron and the Orono Planning Commission members, This letter is in regard to #17-3911, Lakewest, LLC, 3245 Wayzata Boulevard and Curt Fretham's request for an Interim Use Permit to allow construction staging, materials and equipment storage and materials recycling at that location (the old Eisinger property). I am writing this letter to represent the concerns of my parents, Robert & Kathryn Dumas. They are the owners of Dumas Apple House and are the immediate neighbors to the east. We realize you are dealing with two separate issues. The Planning Commission and City Council have discussed adding language to your ordinance to handle requests for an Interim Use Permit as there is no language now to address this request. The other issue is actually discussing whether an Interim Use Permit should be issued to Mr. Fretham. We would like to address the second issue. We have quite a few concerns with allowing Mr. Fretharn to use his property for construction staging, material and equipment storage and materials recycling — gravel crushing. Rather than list all the storage and staging we will from here on in just say, "gravel crushing" to encompass every -thing but in fewer words. 1) Allowing a gravel crushing site on that property is not consistent for the uses which the property is guided in the comprehensive plan. Neither the current Orono zoning nor the Long Range Land Use Plan allow for a gravel crushing facility on this parcel of land. Possibly some of you and/or your predecessors worked very hard on these plans and the results were carefully arrived at for a reason. 2) Some of you may feel that this is a less populated area than other potential gravel crushing sites, but those of us that are on the neighboring properties are not any less important. 3) The Orono Preserve development (our neighbor to the east) has already sold four lots/houses and I'm sure will sell several more this spring. We would think new home owners could be in their houses possibly within the next year. The four current buyers and any potential buyers may know nothing of the proposed gravel crushing site. We would think they would have concerns about a gravel crushing site so close to their newly purchased home in a residential neighborhood. 4) There is talk of other debris being brought in to this site, not just the asphalt from the Hwy 112 project. Would there really be a way to monitor, regulate or control what else is brought in? 5) Do you know if there would be any burning of any type of materials at this site? 6) Would there be any melting of any type of materials at this site? 7) Noise is an issue. Heavy machinery and gravel crushing makes quite a bit more noise than a residential neighborhood. Also, Mr. Fretham has stated that some of their gravel crushing and work will be done at night. Day time noise is bad enough, but night time noise of heavy equipment and gravel crushing would definitely not be welcome. From the Orono Code of Ordinances Section 58-119: (b) Maximum noise levels by receiving land use districts. No person shall operate or cause or permit to be operated any source of noise in such a manner as to create a noise level outdoors exceeding the dB limit set in table 1 for the receiving [and use district specified.