11-09-2015 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday, November 9, 2015 7:00 o'clock p.m. 9. #15-3768/15-3780 MICHAEL AND LISA LARSON, 3569 SHORELINE DRIVE, TEXT AMENDMENT TO AMEND B-1 ZONING DISTRICT AND CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT (continued) Lisa Larson stated the company's literature says that the waste that goes through the canine grass comes out more clear and fresh than the water people drink. Mike Larson noted there have been studies done in New York State on this product and that they basically found there is no contamination into the ground water. McMillan asked how deep the limestone would be. Mike Larson indicated the crushed limestone bed is six inches. McMillan asked where the water will run off. Lisa Larson stated it would be the same thing as the liquid waste. McMillan noted this site will have a lot of water put on it every day Lisa Larson indicated they will not be watering the grass like other people do and that it will go into the ground as usual. Larson noted they will also be treating it with enzymes. Council Member Walsh stated he did visit some of the other facilities in the area, including Adogo at Ridgedale. Walsh stated that facility was very nice and well -kept but that they were only open during the day and not at night. In addition, they did not have an outside play area and the relief area was very small with a high wood fence. Walsh stated a person could not even see it because it is between their building and the Midas building. Walsh noted he was not able to speak with any of the neighbors near that facility. Walsh stated he also visited Wolf Central, which was very noisy inside but not outside the building. Walsh indicated he has never really been worried about the inside noise but more the noise generated from the outside play/relief areas. Wolf Center had no outside play area but they do have an outside relief area. Walsh stated he did have a chance to talk to some of the neighbors near Wolf Central and they said that probably half of the time the urine smell is very strong, which stops them from going out and doing things in their yards. In addition, they get woken up at 7:00 pretty much every day. Walsh stated in that situation they have the noise and the smell. One of the neighbors also tried to sell their house a year prior to the business going in and they were not able to sell their house due to the potential issues. Walsh stated that was a concern of his and that he still thinks this business is not appropriate in a residential area and that it would be more appropriate in a large commercial area. Lisa Larson pointed out that Wolf Central does not have canine grass. Larson stated the entire intent of the product is to mitigate the smells and keep it very sanitary. Larson noted Canine Spa and Adogo have the canine grass and that the dogs are let out in the fenced in area. McMillan stated she visited one of the sites and it was very quiet outside but very noisy inside with nonstop barking. McMillan stated there were no dogs in the outside play area at the time she visited. Page 14 of 24