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MINUTES OF THE <br />ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING <br />Monday, May 9, 2016 <br />7:00 o’clock p.m. <br />_____________________________________________________________________________________ <br />Page 8 of 28  <br />  <br />8. #16-3818 DALE MULFINGER (SALA ARCHITECTS) ON BEHALF OF CHRIS AND <br />LESLIE NEUGENT, 710 BIG ISLAND, VARIANCES (continued) <br />Council Member Cornick asked if the 3’ x 3’ footings have been inspected. <br /> <br />Curtis indicated the City has not inspected them but the applicant has performed some structural testing <br />by standing on one of the piers. <br /> <br />Dale Mulfinger, Sala Architects, stated they have only dug around the edges of the piers and that they are <br />fairly substantial. Mulfinger indicated they have not found any historic record of what the piers were <br />used for but that the previous property owner had installed a sliding glass door to go out to that area but <br />never built out to that area. The new owner purchased the house less than a year ago and is not aware of <br />all the history. The house was built approximately 15 years ago as a replicate of something that used to <br />be there. <br /> <br />Mulfinger noted they are extending the roof over the three doors out to the piers for the porch. They are <br />rumble stone footings that appear to be very similar to the foundation of the house. Mulfinger noted the <br />house has a strange floor plan and that the majority of their work is interior in an attempt to realign the <br />floor plan to accommodate a handicap child. Mulfinger stated currently there is no screen porch on the <br />house but instead open porches. Mulfinger indicated they will be enclosing a portion of the southwest <br />corner of the porch in order to make a library out of what is a vast amount of living room. <br /> <br />Printup asked whether the piers would be grandfathered in if there were historical records found showing <br />that it was used at one time. <br /> <br />Mattick indicated in his opinion it would not be. Mattick stated if anything was there at one time, it has <br />been removed and the right to have it grandfathered in has been lost. <br /> <br />Cornick asked how confident the applicant is that the footings will exist in 20 years. <br /> <br />Mulfinger stated if they are not totally adequate, they would rebuild them as they currently exist. <br /> <br />McMillan asked if he can guarantee that they will use the existing piers as they are today. <br /> <br />Mulfinger indicated he cannot guarantee that but that they would look the same if they had to rebuild <br />them. Mulfinger noted a heavy weight structure will not be placed on them either. <br /> <br />McMillan stated she is attempting to figure out why they want to go out to the piers. <br /> <br />Mulfinger stated it was because they thought it was part of the original structure at one point and that the <br />larger porch is more functional. <br /> <br />Walsh noted that is not a practical difficulty and it is a slippery slope if they approve this. <br /> <br />Mulfinger stated their initial thought was that it was part of the original structure. <br /> <br />Walsh moved, Printup seconded, Application No. 16-3818, Dale Mulfinger, SALA Architects, on <br />behalf of Chris and Leslie Neugent, 710 Big Island, to direct Staff to draft an approval resolution <br />granting variances without the encroachment in the 0-75 foot zone. VOTE: Ayes 5, Nays 0.