06-11-2018 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday,June 11,2018 7:00 o'clock p.m. 15. LA18-40 MATTHEW AND ANGELA HOPPING,95 SMITH AVENUE,CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT AND SECOND DRIVEWAY—Continued Curtis indicated the legal height of the new home is being measured from the existing grade. The elevation out in the street is 985',it will be 989' at the top of the driveway,and the first floor elevation is 991'. Walsh stated the applicants are allowed to go up to 30 feet with the new structure. Blackwell stated his concern was in terms of raising the overall grade and that he does not want to see that happen. Blackwell commented it sounds like that is not the case here and that the dirt being brought in is to fill in the area where the existing house is. Angela Hopping noted they are not able to build in the exact same location as the existing house due to the setbacks. Hopping stated simply because they have work vehicles,that does not mean that they are running a business out of their home. Hopping indicated they work for a construction company and she drives a small pickup and her husband drives a van. Hopping reiterated they are not running a business out of their home and that they work out of Little Canada. Hopping indicated they have already contacted their demolition guy to sweep the streets every day and that they are all on the same page about what needs to be done. Hopping stated she will definitely talk to all of the contractors and advise them about not going down to the end of Smith and staying off the neighbor's yard. Hopping noted their lot,as compared to 60 Smith,looks over twice as long and that they have a lot more area for parking vehicles. Hopping stated they are not the people that built on 60 Smith and that they are totally cognizant of making everyone happy. Hopping stated they picked the neighborhood because it is quiet and that building a home is a temporary issue and they will try to make it as easy as possible for the neighbors. TJ Bonnett commented one of the concern is having six vehicles on the property. Angela Hopping stated they are not running a business out of their house and that they have company owned vehicles as well as their own personal vehicles. Walsh stated the parking can be ferreted out but that the biggest hang-up he has is having six garage doors. Walsh stated the City is not used to having two driveway cuts and that this is a small lot. Walsh noted there were a lot of homes built in the 1950s and 1960s where they have horseshoe driveways. Seals asked what the Planning Commission recommended about the second driveway access. Crosby stated they did not address that issue. Curtis noted it is not in the zoning code and would not be an item for the Planning Commission. Page 14 of 20