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Prepared By: LLO Reviewed By: Approved By: <br /> <br /> <br /> CITY OF ORONO MEMORANDUM <br /> <br />DATE: November 13, 2023 <br />TO: City Council Members <br />FROM: Laura Oakden <br />RE: Average Lakeshore Setback Discussion- Continued <br /> <br />Purpose Review the current Average Lakeshore Setback (ALS) regulations and consider <br />changes. <br /> <br />Background. The Council directed staff to <br />bring the average lakeshore setback <br />regulations to a work session to explore <br />potential amendments to the City Code. The <br />ALS is a sight line setback applied to protect <br />views of the lake from neighboring homes <br />across property lines. It is measured by finding <br />the most lakeward point of the abutting <br />building and drawing a line that bisects the <br />subject property. The City implements a 75’ <br />lakeshore setback which is a measured set <br />distance from the Ordinary High Water Line (OHWL). Both the 75’ lakeshore setback and the <br />ALS apply to lakeshore properties. The more restrictive setback is applied to a subject parcel. <br /> <br />Challenges: The ALS is unique to each property and each specific building at time of <br />development. A curved lakeshore, an extreme neighbor setback, a peninsula, or a parcel that <br />abuts a channel create a variety of challenges for implementing the ALS. <br /> <br />In theory, when the lakeshore is straight and when properties are uniform in size, the ALS <br />achieves the goal of protecting views of the lake from each of the neighboring homes along the <br />shoreline. The City often grants variances for ALS, when requested, as long at the proposed <br />project does not negatively impact the neighbors’ views. <br /> <br />Options to Consider: <br />1. Recalculate to find the AVERAGE distance of the neighboring home locations. The <br />average distances measured from the two abutting homes would be used to find a <br />numerical average setback from the OHWL for the subject property rather than a drawn <br />line like we use today. <br /> For Example: <br />• Eastern House is 100’ from the OHWL <br />• Western House is 120’ from the OHWL <br />• 100+120/2= 110. <br />• The house in the middle must meet a setback 110’ from the OHWL.