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FILE #16-3845 <br />July 13, 2016 <br />Page 4 of 6 <br />6. The board or the council may not permit as a variance any use that is not permitted <br />under this chapter for property in the zone where the affected person's land is located. <br />This is not applicable to this application, as the residential use is a permitted use. <br />7. The board or council may permit as a variance the temporary use of a one-family <br />dwelling as a two-family dwelling. This is not applicable to this application. <br />8. The special conditions applying to the structure or land in question are peculiar to such <br />property or immediately adjoining property. The conditions applicable to this property <br />are typical of the Crystal Bay neighborhood but are not typical of the overall RR-lB <br />zoning district. <br />9. The conditions do not apply generally to other land or structures in the district in which <br />the land is located. The conditions apply to many other 100' wide corner lots in the <br />Crystal Bay neighborhood which as a result of the required setbacks would have only a <br />20' wide buildable envelope under RR-lB standards; but do not apply to a majority of <br />lots within the RR-lB district. <br />10. The granting of the application is necessary for the preservation and enjoyment of a <br />substantial property right of the applicant. The property is typical of single family lot in <br />the Crystal Bay neighborhood. Further, the property was assessed for a sewer unit and <br />provided with municipal sewer in 1985, hence the property was assumed to be <br />buildable as a combination of two lots at that time, as evidenced by City Council <br />Resolution No. 1797. <br />11. The granting of the proposed variance will not in any way impair health, safety, comfort <br />or morals, or in any other respect be contrary to the intent of this chapter. Granting of <br />the variances would not impair health, safety, comfort or morals and would be in <br />keeping with the intent of the zoning code. <br />12. The granting of such variance will not merely serve as a convenience to the applicant, but <br />is necessary to alleviate demonstrable difficulty. The lot size as compared to the RR-lB <br />zoning standards is a practical difficulty, as adherence to those standards would result <br />in a very narrow buildable envelope and a home that would be out of character with <br />the surrounding neighborhood. Granting of the area, width and setback variances will <br />solve a practical difficulty that otherwise would make the lot virtually unusable for a <br />single family home. <br />The Planning Commission may recommend and the Council may impose conditions in granting of <br />variances. Any conditions imposed must be directly related to and must bear a rough <br />proportionality to the impact created by the variance. No variance shall be granted or changed <br />beyond the use permitted in this chapter in the district where such land is located. <br />Lot Area/Width Variances <br />The property at 100' wide and less than ½ acre in area is typical of lots in the Crystal Bay <br />neighborhood, the majority of which was platted in 1909 and 1915. Over the past century, <br />individual lots as well as double lots and a few triple or larger lots have been built on with single <br />family homes. The RR-lB zoning of the Crystal Bay neighborhood is a reflection of the <br />surrounding rural area, and has never been revised to reflect the actual neighborhood lot sizes <br />created 100 years ago. Rezoning to more closely match the prevailing lot sizes has been <br />discussed in the past but not acted upon. Note that Orono's ½-acre zone standards would allow <br />for a 0.5 acre lot and 100' width, with setbacks of 30' front and rear, 10' sides, and 15' side <br />street.