03-27-2000 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES FOR MARCH 27, 2000 4. #2540 Bradley Hoyt, 2523 Kelly Avenue — After -the -Fact Conditional Use Permit — Continued Mr. Hoyt was represented by his attorneys Mr. William Skolnick and Mr. Rick Sheridan. Weinberger stated that additional information regarding the after -the -fact variances was delivered by Skolnick on March 24, 2000. The items were requested by the City of Orono to complete the land use application and are in addition to the City Council reports delivered the previous week. The application has been before the Planning Commission on 2 separate occasions in the format of a public hearing. At this time the applicant is requesting after -the -fact conditional use permit and variances for landscaping work that occurred on the property in 1998. The items staff received on Friday were: a hardship statement, engineer's report, a letter, affidavits, and depositions on the case. At this point the application regards a stone retaining wall that is 3 -4 feet tall, is hardcover within 75 feet of the lakeshore, and requires a conditional use permit. The Council may choose to: 1) Approve the conditional use permit and variances after -the -fact that would permit the retaining wall to remain as it exists. 2) Approve the conditional use permit and variances after - the -fact subject to the conditions that a natural screen be installed on the property to adequately screen the boulder retaining wall. The City of Orono has a policy and the Comprehensive Plan states retaining walls shall be screened with natural vegetation. This would require shrubs or bushes spaced out to screen the wall from the lake. Also, the screening should be subject to annual inspections until such time the growth is determined to be healthy and stable.. 3) Remove the wall and place some other form of erosion control on the property. The City Engineer does not consider this a viable option because new vegetation would not stabilize the bank, and erosion would cause silt issues. 4) Refer the application back to the Planning Committee based on the new submittals. 5) Deny the application. Mayor Jabbour asked if the City Engineer inspected the site. Kellogg stated he has inspected the site, and he does not recommend removing the wall. Skolnick stated there have been new developments. A purchase agreement has been submitted on the property and the new buyer likes the boulder wall. The buyer will not buy the house if he has to remove the retaining wall. Skolnick stated part of the lawsuit involved damages interfering with the sale of the property. Barrett stated this is not the proper forum for discussing the lawsuit. Mayor Jabbour remarked that the Council will review the application fairly and independently of the lawsuit. •