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MINUTES OF THE <br /> ORONO PLANNING COMMISSION <br /> Monday,November 16,2020 <br /> 6:00 o'clock p.m. <br /> McCutcheon said they are so experienced and see it so many times,they only have two angles they can go <br /> for. He agrees the addition is not a big deal; for him, the deal-breaker is the stairs and noted they almost <br /> look bigger than 10 feet. Not that it is a lot of distance,but when it gets closer to the lake that is when <br /> they tend to put the block up. He would be in favor if they can get those stairs away from the lake in <br /> some way. <br /> Ms. Curtis noted a pillar onscreen. <br /> McCutcheon asked if they could do an L stair design to keep it away from the lake a bit. He noted this <br /> Commission is famous for being sticklers on getting close to the lake. <br /> Chair Ressler noted the homeowner may have something to say. <br /> Brian O'Connell,homeowner at 3145 North Shore Drive,noted he would certainly prefer to have a <br /> straight-off stair because it is more visually appealing from the lake. He thinks they can work with the <br /> builder and the architect to potentially grade that ground so they end it one stair higher. Right now they <br /> are literally one foot beyond the existing boundary of the house; one could argue that the decorative <br /> elements of the roof go beyond that on the top anyway, but he would certainly prefer that the stair be <br /> straight as it looks better from the lake than an angled stair. However,there could be some things they <br /> could do with the grading of that land to make the second stair become the bottom stair. <br /> Gettman clarified the concern of the Commissioners and said it is not that the stairs are meeting the same <br /> threshold as the rest of the house; it is the extending beyond what currently exists. <br /> Mr. O'Connell said his contention is that his house has a certain distance from the lake,the farthest <br /> structure to the lake as it exists; his asked if someone who owns an irregularly shaped house versus a <br /> rectangular house, is he allowed to build into the rectangle area. <br /> Gettman noted that is what they suggested they would not support,the squaring off to say they will meet <br /> the farthest point. It is all the rest of that being squared off which ends up being a further intrusion of that <br /> protected area. He said the old stairs are dotted on a drawing... <br /> Mr. O'Connell said where it says the proposed addition onscreen,that is currently the deck and the new <br /> deck will go where the stairs are right now,but it will not be as big as the old deck by design. When they <br /> have a proper rise and run of the stairs coming down, they end where they end. <br /> Gettman stated it is the lower level floor plan and asked Ms. Curtis to show it onscreen. He noted all of <br /> those steps that are going straight toward the lake are farther out than the existing structure in that <br /> location; it is not that the Applicant is squaring it off,the concern that the other Commissioners have <br /> voiced and he shares, is that in that one corner,they are now extending it an additional 13 feet,roughly. <br /> Mr. O'Connell said that is correct and he hears what they are saying. He is also going one tread further <br /> than the columns of his house and noted he is limited to the right because of the lagoon setback and <br /> cannot have stairs over there. The only place to put a stair on the deck is down the way shown onscreen. <br /> He could have a deck with no stairs but he'd strongly prefer not to do that. <br /> Mr. McNeal said having the straight stairs like that is less obtrusive to the view from Lake Minnetonka <br /> because people are not looking at railings,but rather a simple cascading set of steps. Visually he thinks it <br /> Page 8 of 23 <br />