2009-00529-PERMIT VOIDED - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Melanie Curtis Fram: Melanie Curtis Sent: Thursday, September 03, 2009 10:19 AM To: 'Steve LichY Subject: 3315 Graham Hill Rd - Basement Attachments: admin ci orono mn us 20090903_103556.pdf; 2009-0529 3315 Graham Hill Road 9-3-09.pdf; building_height.pdf Steve Attached are the most recent comments from the City's Engineer. I am through with the zoning review of the building permit for 3315 Graham Hill Road and only one concern comes up (from a zoning perspective).... The number of stories. Orono allows 2 % stories max, and in order for your basement not to count as a story it must meet our definition of basement. I believe the top floor is defined as a full story, resulting in 3 stories &therefore the house does not meet code. As I calculate, the first floor elevation is 1025', our definition states that the first floor may be no more than 6' above existing grade for 50%of the perimeter. Based on the first floor elevation the 6'grade point is 1019'. I have attached my highlighted analysis of the perimeter where I believe 1019' exists and where it meets the 6' standard. This appears to be significantly less than 50%of the perimeter. In order to resolve this, the home must either be lowered into the grade more to meet the basement definition or the top floor must be modified to conform to the half-story definition. I have also included the basement and story definitions below for your review. Basement means that portion of a building that is partly or completely below the existing ground level. A basement shall be considered as a story for purposes of determining the number of stories in a building, when the finished surface of the floor above the basement is more than six feet above the existing ground level for more than 50 percent of the basement's perimeter. The perimeter of the basement does not include portions of the house or garage that do not have a lower level but are merely "unexcavated". Artificially raising the grade adjacent to the foundation of a structure (by filling or by a combination of filling and retaining walls) above the surrounding natural terrain shall not be allowed as a method for converting a defined story to a defined basement, regardless of any other benefits to the property of such action. Finished grade that increases more than one foot from existing ground level shall be considered as artificially raising the grade. However, artificially raising the grade when such action merely restores a previously excavated site to its original natural grade may used as a method for converting a defined story to a defined basement. Basement, ��alkout, means a basement having an entrance at grade level. Building height means the vertical distance between the highest adjoining ground level at the building or ten feet above the lowest ground level, whichever is lower, and the top of the cornice of a flat roof, or the deck line of a mansard roof, or the uppermost point on a round or other arch-type roof, or the median height of the highest gable of a pitched or hipped roof. Topographic changes which elevate the adjoining ground level above the existing terrain shall not be considered in determininb building height. For a pitched or hipped roof situation, regardless whether the highest living space in a building is a half-story or full story, if the highest living space contains windows (excluding skylights) the upper measuring point far defining building height shall be the median height of the top of the highest window and the highest peak of the roof. i