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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday, December 14, 2009 6:30 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Page 9 of 17 (8. #09-3433 RICHARD HANSON, 340 BIG ISLAND, Continued) Eiden stated if Mr. Hanson desires a contiguous lot, then he would suggest the 33 feet be run next to his property at 340 up to the street, which would give him a contiguous lot and still allow the access to remain. McMillan commented the beach is actually private property. Murphy stated it was his understanding these are not two separate lots. Mattick stated there is some question concerning that. Turner pointed out Lot F and Lot 71 of Morris Island Park. Turner stated the one lot in Morris Island Park and the one lot in Morris Island Park Second, along with the vacated portion, are considered one record lot. Murphy noted the City Council is being asked to vacate an easement tonight and not do a lot line rearrangement. Curtis pointed out that the beach has always been considered private property. Gaffron noted the Planning Commission in 2002 suggested the property owners in the area acquire the strip between the end of Meta-Comet Avenue and the lakeshore. The piece that is missing is how the property owners on the north side of the vacated street acquired rights to Lot G. Gaffron stated he understands the concerns of the neighbors and concurred that there are limited access points on the island. This access has historically been used as an access by the neighbors. One option is the City could acquire a 40-foot strip of land from the road to the lake and make it a formal access point. Gaffron concurred that some of the properties on the east end of the island are difficult to access and that the City does acknowledge that this property has been used in the past but that it may not be a legal access since it is private property. Bremer stated if the City Council does not approve the vacation tonight, the City is not creating a public access over that piece of land. Eiden stated in essence the City is giving Mr. Hanson 1200 square feet, and that for Mr. Hanson to get a contiguous piece of property, the vacation could be done on the other side. Mr. Eiden stated in his view that would be a solution. Murphy stated in his view they are comparing apples and oranges by suggesting they relocate the access over to the lot line, which has other implications. Murphy stated to his recollection there was a lot of work that went into configuring the interior streets of Big Island and the access points for the interior streets due to issues with the residents utilizing other people’s property to gain access from the lake. The two primary access points that were agreed upon were on the west side access and the inside access. McMillan stated to her understanding the beach was not vacated in 2002. Turner displayed Lot G and Meta-Comet Avenue on the overhead. Eiden stated in his view the intent was that access be at that point. Item #02 - CC Agenda - 01/11/2010 Approval of Council Minutes 12/14/09 [Page 9 of 17]