05-24-2021 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday, May 10, 2021 6:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Page 7 of 34 14. LA21-000017 – JOSEPH & SARA THULL, 480 BIG ISLAND, PERMIT FOR DOCK ON CITY RIGHT-OF-WAY (BAY PLACE) – UPDATE Curtis said at the April 12, 2021, Mr. Thull presented his request for a permit to place a private dock on the City’s right-of-way pursuant to the City code. In addition there were several members of the public present offering input. Following the discussion, Council tabled the application and directed the applicant to work with other Big Island property owners to develop a solution or policy addressing dock access needs for inland property owners. Meetings have been held with a small group of Big Island neighbors on April 28 and May 5, 2021. The applicant provided a written summary included in the packet as Exhibit A and they have not yet developed a solution. Other comments received were from Ms. Farnes and are included in the packet. Walsh noted they heard from many people at the last meeting and to avoid repetition he would prefer updates; he and Crosby went to the island and walked it all so they have visual, firsthand thoughts. Joseph Thull said at the last Council meeting, he came with a dock request and the Council asked the residents to work together and not just solve it for one person but find a solution preventing this from coming up season after season. That became a complex scenario and they are trying to figure out the needs of today and how to adopt the future plan. The neighbors have met numerous times, traded proposals, and had good, open discussions. On May 5, 2021 they had a discussion and the resolution went from finding a dock for Mr. Thull’s location and turned into solving this for approximately 7 interior lot owners which changes the dynamic of what they are trying to solve. It was decided to send communication broadly to other residents because they might be impacted; Mr. Thull went from being a rather unpopular person to being even more unpopular as he bore that effort. They notified those residents that this meeting was happening so they can get an update and send meeting minutes from the last meeting for context. Mr. Thull noted there are currently approximately 7 vacant lots without a dock permit and 3 owners currently looking for a solution. There are 7 right-of-ways of which 3-4 are better- suited options. Scenarios include designing one dock, one right-of-way, one lot owner; another is one dock, one right-of-way, with a shared dock. The third scenario is where feasible and if necessary, multiple docks, and multiple property owners; some lots are bigger than others. He said it is likely that the City needs to look at those right-of-ways and assess each one and showed them on screen. Nancy Farnes, 230 and 460 Big Island, requested that Mr. Thull drop the application to revoke the permit she has had for 35 years and he said no. Now they are talking about 5-8 other locations and the hardship affects 210, 220, 230, and 260. They have 2 large cruisers and it is actually 34 feet rather than 38 feet. With another dock and boats, it also encroaches on Jud’s property. She feels the property values will go down hundreds of thousands substantially, and will also affect neighboring properties if they cram more boats in there. Walsh noted they are trying to talk about solutions and ideas and Ms. Farnes is saying she just does not want anything there. He asked her when was the last time she put a dock there? Ms. Farnes replied it has been about 6 years. At the prior meeting she explained that they have had medical issues and while they used to almost live there, now they are only able to get out there twice a