08-25-2003 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday, August 25, 2003 • 7:00 o'clock p.m. (PUBLIC COMMENTS, Continued) Gaffron stated that the Joneses had not requested a height variance. Barrett disagreed with the statement from Gaffron that there is no solid language in the code of a definition, when in actuality it does state you can go to 2 '/z stories or 30' tall. Barrett cautioned that if the code states 30' or 2 '/2 stories are allowable the City must administrate this based on an accepted interpretation, and apply it systematically to all applications. The City has the ability to define the half story as long as it applies it systematically and reasonably. Sansevere asked if Gaffron could meet with the applicants to resolve the issues. Gaffron stated that the City has issued a permit it is comfortable with. He stated that the only thing that would change is telling staff that their interpretation is wrong and the applicants could go thru an administrative appeal process. Barrett agreed that, procedurally, the appeal process would be helpful. Since the applicants had received a permit for work they don't want, in essence, they have been denied the permit they do want, and it is the denial of that permit by staff that needs to be focused on and brought before the Council for reconsideration. Barrett was hesitant to encourage the appeal process from the standpoint that staff does not seem to have a strong grip on the facts regarding what constitutes the half story. • Murphy asked when the building permit was obtained and applied for and what caused the delay. In addition to the half story definition, Jones acknowledged that they had taken time to redesign the main level living space to accommodate a larger kitchen. Lipa reiterated the fact that they appeared before the Planning Commission 3-4 times in an effort to meet the ever changing definition of the half story and they wished to save others from the same fate. Jones stated that they had hoped they might be able to move forward on their construction with the Council's blessings. He repeated that they have not asked for a height variance to accomplish this; however, they cannot ask for a variance to their half story when there is no code to apply it to. As they were unable to meet the deadline to be placed on the agenda, Lipa stated that she had spoken to Moorse and flat out asked him if the Council could make a motion off their public comment piece and he responded that, while it was seldom done, it was possible. Moorse indicated that he advised the applicants to provide a letter for review by the Council prior to the meeting, if possible, on which to base their recommendation, but also indicated that a Council member could choose to make a motion. While he recognized they'd been faced with a frustrating year, part the City's fault due to the lack of definition and part their own, Murphy did not know how to help other than referring the Joneses back to staff to work with them to create a plan that could come back formally before Council. He • Page 7 of 14