04/21/03 Planning Commission Minutes

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING Monday,April 21, 2003 6:00 o'clock p.m. (#4 #03-2880 FRED JOHNSON, Continued) There were no public comments. Rahn stated that not having the original applicant, Mr. Johnson, on hand posed a tough scenario. He pointed out that, in his opinion, the more important issue was the structural coverage problem versus the hardcover matter. Chair Smith pointed out that the current owners could remove the deck and still add an attractive railing to the upper floor balcony. Rahn stated that, clearly, the minutes from past meetings with Mr. Johnson refer to a ground floor deck only. Mrs. Chwialkowski stated that the deck was critical to them when purchasing the home. Since the home itself was quite small, the deck added to the homes useable living space. She referred again to the missed opportunities of the City to correct this error during numerous inspections and prior to issuing the certificate of occupancy. As Building Inspector Lyle Oman was present,he was asked to comment. Oman indicated that, when the deck came to the City's attention, the home was still for sale and he made numerous efforts to contact the applicant. He indicated that he had been caught off guard and that a past, ineffective, inspector had not raised this issue earlier. Mrs. Chwialkowski indicated that she was angry that they were suffering the consequences of this incompetent City official. She questioned whether it was their fault that the City had an incompetent inspector that did not catch this problem prior to occupancy or sale. Hawn encouraged the new owners to pursue Mr. Johnson. She felt they had more than adequate recourse to go after Mr. Johnson based on an inaccurate disclosure. She agreed that there was some error put upon them by the City, and that perhaps, the City Council might rethink this and allow them some leniency. However, as a Planning Commission, she indicated that they had approved one thing and were presented with something else. She urged the current owners to plead their case to the City Council,but stated that she must insist the application be returned to what was originally approved. Chair Smith indicated that the original applicant, clearly, knew what he had done and that he was in error. She believed the new owners would be justified in pursuing some recourse. Mabusth stated that any prospective buyer can go to the City to look at a homes address file and learn about a given property prior to purchasing it. PAGE 7 of 40