05/19/03 Planning Commission Minutes

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING Monday,May 19, 2003 6:00 o'clock p.m. (#7 #03-2893 JOHN AND ROBERTA HENRICH, Continued) Rahn stated that the Commission would ask the applicant to remove the old shed in the 0- 75' setback and replace it with a lockbox. Henrich stated that he believed the steep grade provided them with adequate hardship to also keep the shed. Hawn concurred with Rahn regarding the shed. While Gaffron stated that, if money was not an issue, someone could change the grade, the access, and the entire character of the property to make the design conforming, he questioned whether that should be the goal of the Commission. He added that parking is an issue for residents along Highwood and the added space they have serves a use to the neighborhood. Chair Smith questioned whether the necessary changes to make it conforming would require exorbitant amounts of fill. Gaffron indicated that it would require a lot of fill to change the property, which, in turn, could create drainage issues. Bremer questioned how cutting the size of the home down to meet requirements would work. At merely 1600 s.f., Henrich maintained that cutting the house down an extra 100-200 s.f. would not impact hardcover significantly,but would impact their livability. While he did not feel the size of the home to be an issue, Rahn felt that other removals were warranted. He suggested that they remove the shed, design a smaller deck, and remove some of the driveway hardcover. He agreed that the topography of the property presented a hardship. While she concurred, Bremer stated that they would need to be clear that it was the steep elevations that presented the hardship, unlike the Toth's whose project warranted a basic redesign. Rahn stated that, short of regrading the entire topography of the site, they could not redesign the application. Hawn encouraged the applicants to find additional hardcover removals. PAGE 26 of 39