04-12-1999 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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r James R. R enckens s 4680 Forestview Lane Plymouth, Minnesota SS442 (612) 559-2380 April 2,1999 Elizabeth Van Zomeren City Planner/Zoning Administrator Orono City Hall 2750 Kelley Parkway Orono, MN 55356 Re; James R. Renckens Class III Preliminary Plat Subdivision Zoning File No. 2466 Dear Ms. Van Zomeren: On March 15, 1999, the Orono Planning Commission recommended approval of the preliminary plat proposed by my wife and me. The Commission's approval was made subject to three conditions. Those conditions, and our responses to each, are as follows. 1. Provide 50' Outlot across north property line. We have chosen not to incorporate the recommended change into the preliminary plat that will be proposed to the C*ty Council on April 12. We have a number of reasons for objecting to the 50' Outlot requirement, flease bear with us as we try to explain. First, creating a 50' Outlot along the entire Northerly property line makes it much more likely that a street will be constructed within the Outlot area. The construction of a street along the North property line would deprive our property of the privacy it now enjoys, and, for that reason alone, the property is less desirable and thus less valuable. Apart from value considerations, there are issues of safety and security. These considerations are adversely affected by the creation of a city street, which, in addition to providing undesired access to our property, would serve as its primary purpose to make other properties situated to the North and East more accessible. With that increase in accessibility also comes more traffic and the resulting loss of privacy, safety and security. Creation of the 50' Outlot also raises issues with respect to fairness and the public interest. The neighbors to our East in the Wear Lane neighborhood, as well as our neighbors to the West in the Crystal Creek neighborhood, are strongly opposed to the creation of such an access street. With respect to providing access to the North, the City could not have been clearer in stating its written condition to the developer of the Crystal Creek subdivision when it declared in Resolution No.3896 dated May 12,1997 approving the Crystal Creek subdivision: