03-30-2020 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday, March 9, 2020 6:00 o'clock p.m. 19. LA20-000009 — DON GAMBLE OB/O RICHARD A AND KIM A EDWARDS, 2480 AND 2474 CARMAN STREET, SKETCH PLAN Barnhart stated the sketch plan is a proposal to split two lots down the middle which exist on a shoreline. This will create two lots north of the inlet and two lots south of the inlet. The applicant represents both property owners for this purpose. The lot has two different zoning districts: the north lot requires a''/z-acre zone, and the area south is a minimum of 1 acre. The two lots north of the inlet conform to lot area and lots width. The two lots south cannot meet the lot area requirements. In addition, the parcel to the west cannot meet the lot width requirement. The project is predicated upon the Council's support of some waivers or variances to allow additional lots. Not a lot of work has been done because the City Council historically has not supported additional density at the lakeshore. Johnson, referencing the displayed aerial photograph, asked if the yellow line down the middle is the existing property line, Barnhart stated he was correct Barnhart indicated the Planning Commission reviewed the sketch plan and recognized the inherent challenges with the amount of land but did not support a waiver. Mr. Don Gamble, 10704 Water Lily Lane, Woodbury, said he grew up on Lake Minnetonka and knows the lake very well. It is a unique property and situation. The south properties cannot be conforming because they are not attached to other land; the north properties would be conforming if they were on their own. Looking through a lot of the historical information on City planning and Navarre planning, everyone has noticed the lots and said, "What a great opportunity." But it is only a great opportunity if they are on their own. He does not know what would happen to them if they could not be split off. He indicated the south houses are nonconforming whether the north portions of the lot are there or not. Walsh asked Mr. Gamble whether he represented the property owners. Mr. Gamble said he does; he is a real estate developer/broker. Mr. Gamble said the properties have been for sale at times and there are two different buyers: people that want the houses or want the land; they don't want both. He stated he talked to the City to see if they had any interest in having commercial in the area. The City indicated they could not change zoning. He said various Councils and community interests have thought about what to do and what can happen there. Johnson stated the City Council does not have a history of making subdivisions to create nonconformity. Mr. Gamble noted it was not creating a nonconformity. Johnson said making four parcels instead of two does create nonconformity for two of the four. Seals asked if the property could be created into three parcels. Page 12 of 18