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MINUTES OF THE <br />ORONO PLANNING COMMISSION <br />Monday, July 15, 2019 <br />6:30 o'clock p.m. <br />property on a quasi -peninsula and whether the City should also consider the number of feet to the <br />neighboring structure, so it takes into consideration that shoreline point. <br />Barnhart stated Bohns Point is a peninsula and currently the average lakeshore setback is a straight line, <br />so the setback would be 150 feet. <br />Ressler stated that is kind of what he is getting at and that a straight line does not seem to be fair for that <br />lot, which should be taken into consideration. <br />Libby stated he tends to agree from the standpoint of how they look at the metrics. When there is <br />something that has irregularities, it is not uncommon to take the measured empirical distance from either <br />the center line of the street or curb, measure back a block's worth of properties, and then divide the <br />number of properties within that block. Instead what the City is trying to deal with is a very static line <br />that does not take into account the irregular shoreline. <br />Barnhart noted Staff does use its average measuring tool for some nonconforming properties but not for <br />lakeshore lots. The problem with the average number for most situations is that the line is logical. The <br />view is established by where the structure is. <br />Libby stated as long as that stays the static purpose, there is no way to do it differently. Preserving the <br />lakeshore is important and is similar to the dock alignments, which is very complicated. The LMCD <br />attempts to have something fair and reasonable so the docks line up but the lakeshore is not linear and <br />does not take into account that the lakeshore differs. <br />McCutcheon stated he agrees it is a problem and that perhaps they could look at having some sort of <br />minimum for the neighborhood. <br />Barnhart stated in his view, if the average lakeshore setback is 219 feet, there should be some sort of <br />maximum lakeshore setback since there are probably some situations where the house is 450 feet back. <br />The question then becomes, is it fair to have that lot set the average lakeshore setback for the neighboring <br />house and should it be protected as much as the homes on Casco Point where they are all lined up. <br />Barnhart stated that type of situation should be part of any discussion since that creates some of the <br />issues. While a new ordinance is not going to eliminate all variances, it could help reduce it somewhat. <br />Bollis stated he would be in favor of eliminating it, which should be brought forward for discussion. <br />Gettman commented they also did not discuss vegetation that can obstruct a view. In the application <br />earlier, there were some trees that were blocking the view and the other neighbor was willing to remove <br />those. Having that as part of the discussion would also be helpful. If one property owner puts in a bunch <br />of trees, it ends up defeating the purpose of having these protections. <br />Barnhart noted the Council did look at regulating landscaping in the lake yard in the past and ultimately <br />discarded any changes because they did not want to get into regulating that. The City is trying to protect <br />the lake but they also want to preserve a natural view. <br />Gettman stated enforcement of the ordinance also needs to be looked at. <br />Page 2 of 3 <br />