09-15-2014 Planning Commission Packet

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING Monday, August 18, 2014 6:30 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Page 13 of 33 Kavanaugh stated finally the proposed house will not alter the essential character of the neighborhood and that the proposed use fits the neighborhood. Kavanaugh noted the next door lot, Lot 8, is also a 50-foot lot and there are other 50-foot lots located on Elmwood Avenue. Kavanaugh stated the applicants’ proposed use fits the neighborhood. Kavanaugh stated the applicants meet the elements of practical difficulty and that they would ask for approval of the variance request. Chair Leskinen opened the public hearing at 7:37 p.m. James Yarosh, Attorney-at-Law, stated he is here tonight representing Renee Meerkins and Claus Weiler, who reside at 1135 North Arm Drive, which is immediately north of the subject property. Yarosh stated before the Planning Commission tonight is a hypothetical question given the Special Lot Combination Agreement is still in effect and that the application for a variance is premature. In addition, not all the variances necessary for construction of the proposed house are being requested tonight. Yarosh noted the minimum lot size requirement for this district is one acre, which this lot does not meet since it is only .24 acre. Yarosh stated he understands the difficult situation before the Planning Commission and that he would submit that this is not supposed to be and never was a buildable lot given the Special Lot Combination Agreement. The same type of use has been denied by the City on four previous occasions. In addition, the proposal does not meet the minimum lot requirements. Yarosh stated the intent of the very ordinance that the applicants are seeking to have approved is to primarily protect the lake views a lakeshore property owner enjoys over their neighbor’s lakeshore yard and avoid the tunnel view effect of being set back further from the lake than one’s neighbors. Yarosh stated the ordinance is there to protect the neighbors and a variance would go away from that. Yarosh stated the circumstances in this situation have been created by the landowner. The owner knew or should have known that this lot was not buildable when they purchased their house. The owners were aware that this lot provided access to the lake. Yarosh stated all property owners are charged with constructive knowledge of the zoning ordinances at the time of purchase and that the applicants bought a house that came with this lot governed under the Special Lot Combination Agreement. Yarosh stated as it relates to the essential character of the neighborhood, the proposal changes the very nature of the house located at 1135 North Shore. Instead of having a nonbuildable lot in front of them, they will now have a house and their view of the lake will be changed as a result. Yarosh noted one of the questions relating to practical difficulty is whether granting the application is necessary for the preservation and enjoyment of a substantial property right by the applicant. Yarosh stated the applicants still have the right to enjoy the house they purchased as well as the lot that provides them with lake access. Yarosh stated it is not preserving a right but rather enhancing or giving the applicants more than what was originally contemplated when they purchased the property. Yarosh stated it is also his belief that the bluff ordinance applies. Yarosh noted Staff has reviewed the information submitted but still believes that based on the way the ordinance has been interpreted in the past, it does not meet the bluff ordinance. Yarosh stated if it is wrong in the first instance, it is not necessarily a justification for applying that in this case. Item #01 - PC Agenda - 09/15/2014 Approval of Planning Commission Minutes [Page 13 of 33]