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. >E April 18.2003 City of Orono Planning Commission P.O. Box 66 Orono. MN SS323 R£: Variance Request 4I2S Highwood Rd To Whom It May Concern: I moved into Orono when 1 was 18 months old. My parents bought a house at 4125 Highwood Rd. 1 grew up in that house. In 1989 my wife Bobbi and I bought the house from my parents. This property has been in our family for almost 50 years. The house on the property is at least 82 years old. When built there were no building codes and I am not sure the person/persons who built it knew what a level or tape measure was. The house is slowly falling down and we wish to build a new house on the lot. We have considered remodeling the house, but that is not a viable option. However to build a suitable house on this lot will require four variances. The first variance request is for hard cover. The way our garage sits (close to the road and cut into a hill) we are not able to drive directly onto Highwood. We must first drive to the west make a sharp turn then drive out northeast. When I park in the garage it is easiest for me to back in and I must serpentine back up to get into the garage This is why we need such a large driving area. Highwood is a very narrow road and there is no room for on road parking, our driveway can accommodate ten cars. This keeps vehicles off the road and allows traffic to be able to move through safely. Many times in the past we have allowed our neighbors to park there >vhen they are having people visit. Removal of any of the drive area would create a considerable hardship. When we built the garage in 1990 we were granted a hard cover variance. Our next varia ce request is for average setback. Our two neighbors houses to the west are farther south than ours is; however the house to the east is quite a bit further back. I feel the main reason for this is because we are on the tip of a point into the lake and they are on the receding side. Our house faces due south and the house to the east faces more southeast. I have discussed our building plans with the neighbors and they agree that our new house will not affect their view of the lake. I am including a letter from they stating that they have no objection to our building plans. We have a very good relationship with all of our neighbors and their opinion on our building plans is very important to us. The third variance request is that we will be tearing down the primary residence but wish to leave the garage. The garage is a little over 10 years old and in excellent shape. # f : •. . t i* i ' - i i