Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutLA20-000058 (2697 Casco Pt Rd) Ex C Draft PC MinMINUTES OF THE ORONO PLANNING COMMISSION Monday, September 21, 2020 6:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ 5. LA20-000058 MARK & MARY ENGER, 2697 CASCO POINT ROAD, VARIANCE. STAFF: MELANIE CURTIS. Mark and Mary Enger, Applicants, were present. Staff presented a summary of packet information. Ms. Curtis noted due to a calculation error by the Surveyor, the property is currently 43 square feet over the 25% hardcover limit. Staff does not recommend approval of the variance; if the Commission finds Practical Difficulties support granting the variance to accommodate the turnaround requested, and the additional miscalculated hardcover, a recommendation for approval may be appropriate. Kirchner asked if the 10x10 back-up pad was pavers, is there some square footage given credit over and above that it wouldn’t then count towards the hardcover. Ms. Curtis said it does not apply to driveways. The credit for pervious pavement applies to a walkable surface (patio, sidewalk), but nothing that is driven on. Mr. Mark Enger, homeowner, 2697 Casco Point Road, said as Ms. Curtis referenced, they are asking for a small turnaround so cars can exit a very busy – and getting busier – road (Casco Point Road). He noted this application is based on safety and all of the difficulties around it are tied to a safety element. He feels the opportunity to exit the property facing the roads reduces the safety risk to the owners and visitors, but also to the general public driving on Casco Point Road. Mr. Enger said Mrs. Enger’s parents owned the property and they’ve been connected to it since the 1970’s and noted the property had a different design and they didn’t have problems exiting the property many years ago. He said the existing property, previous to the Enger’s construction had a hardcover of 30.49%; the proposal with the correction Ms. Curtis referenced that the 100 square feet would bring the total hardcover to 25.7%. The driveway is very long, steep and winding that connects directly to Casco Point Road. Since the Engers have lived there, it seems to be getting busier with construction and service vehicles, and approximately 75% of homeowners are exiting the very long dead-end road. He noted parking is currently allowed on both side of Casco Point Road, which adds to the complexity and the impact on visibility. Mr. Enger said traffic coming from the North to the South creates a particular visibility issue and noted their neighbors to the South have a turnaround and their lot is a similar shape and size. He noted there have been several near-misses backing out onto the road because of the traffic. As Ms. Curtis referenced, they have received many letters of support from neighbors, and have heard from their mailman and service providers, many of whom who have perhaps experienced the effort of backing out on to Casco Point Road. Mr. Enger said when they designed the house, they were living in Oregon and quite frankly expected their designer to identify some of the challenges of the driveway and did not. He also noted they weren’t expecting as much traffic as there has been on Casco Point Road, and said the fact that they’re only asking for 100 square feet to solve a very present problem hopefully tells the Commission that they’re not trying to gain the system. Mr. Enger said they are asking for approval of the variance application. Chair Ressler opened the public hearing at 7:39 p.m. Chair Ressler closed the public hearing at 7:39 p.m. Chair Ressler asked Ms. Curtis on the right-hand side of the sketch onscreen where some is shaded bituminous and some is clear but noted bituminous, he asked what the cutoff rendering is. MINUTES OF THE ORONO PLANNING COMMISSION Monday, September 21, 2020 6:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Mr. Enger said they have an easement with the neighbor and is a shared entrance to both of their driveways and has been in place for many years. Ms. Curtis said she’s not sure what the distinction is, it might just be new bituminous as it’s an As-Built survey from the home’s construction, noting sometimes the surveyors like to get creative with their textures. Erickson asked if Mr. Enger has any comments regarding bicycle traffic or pedestrians. Mr. Enger said there are kids in the neighborhood with bikes and adults who walk regularly and there are many pedestrians that walk past the property every day. Erickson said in reading the Staff report, he finds that the Applicants make a strong argument, identifying safety, the busy roadway, the property’s unique design, slope and driveway as Practical Difficulties. He finds that very convincing and there is also supporting documentation. It should be noted the homeowner has significant neighborhood support as well, but to Erickson, it is the Practical Difficulties that he feels are unique to the property; therefore he is inclined to support the variance. Libby said for the same reasons Erickson and the Applicant articulated, he supports this. He noted he is fortunate enough to have a driveway that is large enough to turn around and drive out and his habit is to back out because he has the space and visibility to do that. Because the new development has had such heavy traffic, both from construction and new residents, he tends to turn around and go out facing the street so he has that peripheral visibility in both directions. He supports the Staff’s decision on this because he thinks it’s very practical and a safety issue. Chair Ressler noted he believes Staff recommended denial. Libby said it was Practical Difficulty. Chair Ressler clarified Commissioner Libby feels Practical Difficulty has been met for approval. Gettman added that the Applicant was kind enough to answer his question, which is “who is to blame,” and found out it was the designer when they were out West. Mr. Enger noted he did a good job on the rest of the house. Kirchner said hindsight is always 20/20 and having just built a home 12-18 months ago, it is hard to imagine every minor detail and he understands that within the overall task of building and designing a home, he sees how a driveway may be overlooked. He noted although he is not typically one to support any bit of deviation in making hardcover worse, he believes there are Practical Difficulties here and he can empathize based on his law enforcement career with the safety of backing onto a road. He believes the Applicant has demonstrated line-of-sight issues and for those reasons he would support this one. Chair Ressler said this long lot is difficult to navigate, they can’t make the driveway any smaller and they can’t take space from the existing driveway to create room for a turnaround, unless they wanted to drive through grass to get to the road. He said he will caution the Applicant the Commission has had these applications before on Casco Point Road in recent memory that have been denied, which is most likely where Staff finds their recommendation because of that. Chair Ressler can see this one is a bit different MINUTES OF THE ORONO PLANNING COMMISSION Monday, September 21, 2020 6:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ because in other applications there were ways to make things work and it wasn’t a turnaround situation. Therefore, he is in support of the variance application because of the turnaround and he doesn’t believe there is another way to do it. Gettman moved, Erickson seconded, to approve LA20-000058, 2697 Casco Point Road, Variance as applied. VOTE: Ayes 5, Nays 0.