07-25-2016 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday, July 11, 2016 7:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Page 6 of 25 7. LURTON PARK (continued) McMillan asked if there is any public comment related to this application. Dianna Milianta, 3515 Sixth Avenue North, stated she would like to thank the City Council for taking the neighbors’ comments into consideration on this application. Milianta stated the current most northern part of the fence is really only 25 paces from their property line and that the 145 feet will be for the other properties that also have a nice 20-foot buffer. Milianta stated some of the negative impacts to their property include lower property values, impacts to someone wanting to have horses on their property, and the impact it has on the horses. Milianta stated the park users will have a close a view of their residence and that it will ruin the remote country feeling they currently enjoy. Milianta displayed a picture of their horse barn and noted they also raise some chickens. Milianta noted the blue line is the proposed fence and the red line is what they would propose for the fence. Milianta stated the red line would bring the northern fence south approximately 70 feet and that the fence could extend farther east on level ground toward the lake. Milianta indicated their proposed location takes the fence through a clearing and would be easier to install, which would also lower the cost of the fence. Milianta stated it would also have a positive impact on their property by creating an equal buffer similar to the other residences. Milianta displayed a series of photographs taken in various locations along the blue fence line and the proposed red fence line. Pearson noted if the fence is relocated slightly in that area, no trees would need to be cut at all and some of the other locations would only require mowing or the removal of dead trees, which could then be used for wood chips. Star is a big dead tree. Pearson stated the proposed northeast corner of the fence could be extended east about 30 feet. Pearson stated relocating the fence would allow for a remote, country feeling for dog park users and would still allow a pathway for wildlife to travel east/west on the north side of the site. Milianta recommended the gates be auto closing and auto latching to protect both the dogs and people in the area. Milianta stated her husband would also be happy to work with the Park Commission to help route the fence. Milianta stated if the Council is not willing to accept their proposal, they would request that a privacy fence be installed to help protect the neighborhood and the dog park users. Laurel MacLachlan, 3565 Sixth Avenue North, stated she would like to see the fence in the location proposed by Dianne. MacLachlan stated her understanding is when they pull the fence, they use an 8-foot wide corridor to pull the fence and that she is not sure they will have enough room with where it is currently located. Walsh noted he did talk about that before she arrived and that they will be using a skid loader to haul materials in and that the contractor would not need to create that whole swath. MacLachlan stated in her view the City has made some improvements to the plan but that she would propose the fence location proposed by Dianne.