04-22-1991 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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I J DESCRIPTION OP REQUEST The Spring Hill Conference Center operated until 1988 when it ceased operations for economic reasons. Thereafter, Spring Hill Conference Center determined to sell the property in Orcno and significantly reduce its operations. Ov^^r a lengthy period of time, Spring Kill Conference Ce.nter attempted to effectuate a sale to a similar nonprofit entity but without success. The reasons for the hoped for sale to a nonprofit were to continue the existing land use as well as to continue the function of the Spring Hill Conference Center. In 1989, Duncan Dayton and Jud Dayton began to seriously look at the Spring Hill Conference Center site in Orono with an eye toward acquiring the site. Ultimately, a deal was struck and the Dayton brothers acquired the Spring Hill property late in 1989. As an entity to hold title they established the Spring Kill Land Company Limited lurtnership with Spring Hill Land Company, a Minnesota corporation, as the corporate general partner. Jud Dayton and Duncan Dayton are the two principals and are actively involved in management of this property. Jud Dayton and Duncan Dayton herewith petition the City of Orono for a conditioned use permit for the property surrounding the conference center buildings being PID No. 25-118-23-33-0002. The conditional use permit they request is to allow \he buildings and the immediately surrounding property to be used .or two purposes. One is by the Fresh Water Foundation and the other is by the Woodridge Church. Both users are nonprofit corporations. The description of the uses of the Spring Hill site by the Fresh Water Foundation is attached hereto as Exhibit A. As you can see, the uses of Spring Hill by the Fresh Water Foundation are very much the sane as the uses to which the conference center facility was put to by Spring Hill when it was in operation. The second user is the Wocdridge Church which is an active church. Its uses of the Spring Kill site are attached hereto as Exhibit B. Again, the uses of the site are more for church and church related purposes than of being only conference center purposes, but such uses are quite similar to conference center uses. In addition, churches are permissible users of lands in Orono’s Zone RR-lS-1. The Dayton brothers have held the Spring Hill Conference Center property for over a year now without having been able to obtain revenue generating users of it. with the property now on the real estate tax rolls, the holding costs are soaring as you would anticipate. The Day^.on Brothers long-term intention for the property is to develop it at some future date. In the meantime, they wish to obtain a conditional use permit essentially permitting conference center uses similar to those to which the center had been put by its former owner and occupant Spring Hill Conference Center. .. I.',.