05-17-2021 Planning Commission Packet

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO PLANNING COMMISSION Monday,April 19,2021 6:00 o'clock p.m. Barnhart said this item carries over from the March meeting and the work session from earlier today. The Planning Commission provided some feedback in terms of changes to the ordinances as it relates to boat storage.The City code has certain rules and regulations for boat storage and they have worked to address a code enforcement issue identified by the City Attorney. Staff has drafted an ordinance amendment to define what boats are for the purposes of this regulation-basically excluding canoes,kayaks, paddleboards,or pedal boats—and Staff recommends that all boats stored on properties have to be currently licensed and not missing key components of being a boat. These include a motor,propeller, battery,or the interior used for storage such that a person could not operate the vehicle. He noted they borrow from the junk car regulation in that they are not asking people to turn the motor on a boat to make sure it runs, and not all boats have motors. However,it would be to demonstrate that the boat is operable as a boat versus a storage facility. Staff recommends approval as drafted with the exception of"fish house." He would like to remove fish houses from this ordinance and they will address that later if needed. Chair Kirchner opened the public hearing at 6:49 p.m. Chair Kirchner closed the public hearing at 6:49 p.m. McCutcheon moved,Ressler seconded,to approve LA20-000047 Text Amendment related to boat storage.VOTE: Ayes 6,Nays 0. 5. LA21-000027 TEXT AMENDMENT RELATED TO PLUMBING IN ACCESSORY BUILDINGS Barnhart said this ordinance is intended to address an issue that seemed to require residents to go through an unnecessary level of hoops to get minor improvements to their property, but it also still retains protection from a density issue. City code requires someone adding a bath or shower to an accessory building to get a Conditional Use Permit(CUP)for plumbing. The original concern is they were trying to prevent excess density by adding dwelling units in residential areas,effectively doubling the amount of density in a particular area.In the last 15 months the City has had 8 plumbing CUP's come through, all were approved and all included as a matter of approval a covenant that the applicant will not use the structure as a guest house,home occupation,or rent it.From Staffs perspective,they can accommodate those same goals through a conditional permit and not necessarily a conditional use permit(CUP). Staff recommends some changes that remove the requirement that if one is adding a bath or shower to an accessory building,they need to get a CUP. They will still need a CUP when building a guest house, which has been defined a bit differently in correlation with the building code;it requires all of the standards of a dwelling unit identified in the building code such as living, sleeping,eating,cooking, and sanitation requirements.If one meets those requirements they would need a CUP and if they do not they would need to sign a covenant through the office. This ordinance is identical in six residential zoning districts so the actual ordinance amendment will be much lengthier because of duplication. For purposes of conversation,Barnhart wants to show the Commissioners what they may expect to see in the new ordinance.This draft would require the covenant with the standards here and would still prevent guest homes beyond certain requirements. Staff recommends approval of this change that would ease some of the process for property owners looking to add a shower to a pool house,for example. Chair Kirchner opened the public hearing at 6:55 p.m. Chair Kirchner closed the public hearing at 6:55 p.m. Page 6 of 10