06-10-2019 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday,June 10,2019 7:00 o'clock p.m. Johnson asked if there can be a condition placed on the property restricting future garage space. Mattick stated at the Staff meeting the initial question was, can the City place conditions on a variance where the City can prohibit something that would otherwise be allowed. After conducting some research, Mattick stated he believes the City can. If the applicant gets a side yard variance for 5 feet where 10 feet is normally required and the applicant would like a 35-foot house,the Council can say you only get 30-foot house,which is taking away something that otherwise would be allowed. Mattick stated in this instance the Council has to decide whether they should impose conditions. Oakden stated the applicant is requesting 1,432 square feet. Mattick noted that would take away 942 square feet. Walsh noted the condition would not preclude him from coming back at some point in the future. Mattick stated the Code contemplates 2,400 total square feet, so to get a variance for one building,the question is whether there is a strong nexus to strip him of that extra square footage that would be allowed. Walsh stated there may not be a true practical difficulty and the question is whether the code is something the City should revisit. Johnson stated if massing is a concern, attaching the structure is the most unencumbering way to add square footage. Johnson asked whether a practical difficulty could be the fact that the code is unreasonable. Walsh asked how long it would take to revisit this specific code issue. Barnhart noted there is some time left in the 60-day review period but that it might be a challenge to get it before the Planning Commission in time. Crosby stated there could be a practical difficulty with the placement of the structure since access to the structure would be more difficult at the rear of the property. Mattick stated that would be the discussion but that he does not like saying the City does not like its code so let's give variances. If the City Council does not like the code,they should change it. Walsh asked if the applicant would be willing to delay this a little in order for the Council to review the code. Mike Johnsrud,Applicant,stated he has the ability to build up to 999 square feet in another building that is not contiguous to this one and that it is not a state statute that it has to be ten feet from the property line. This development was put in back in the mid-1980s, and the lots are all somewhere around three acres, but someone granted the developer the additional land behind the structures to get to the five-acre minimum that was required at the time the development was done. The taxes and ownership,however, are based on 2.68 acres. Page 16 of 20