Board of Adjustment Agenda and Packet 2020 06 17

Home Browse Search

Board of Adjustment Meeting Minutes May 20, 2020 Page 5 of 9 Mihaly says he is trying to visualize how turning into the garage would work from the street. Ritchie says the intent is to keep the vehicular movement within the alley portion of the sidewalk, but agrees that the movement is probably an awkward one from a driving perspective. As a user, this is not ideal and staff recognizes that, but the applicant has accommodated it into their design well and this is the proposal that they have agreed that they can live with. Public Comment in Favor: None heard. Public Comment Aqainst: Mona Newton, 708 Grant Ave Newton believes it is important for the board members to visit the site. She is afraid that the proposed design will overshadow the neighboring houses and change the character of the neighborhood. The entryway for the garage is also concerning to her. David Lewis, 708 Grant Ave Lewis believes the scale of size is too big and inappropriate. There is an effort to maintain the old structure, but the back end of the building is going to be torn off and rebuilt. He does not think it is the job of the board to find a solution for this property. He is not opposed to a variance in general, but thinks the applicant should go back to the drawing board for this design. Michael Deborski, 601 Pine St Deborski has seen the proposed floor plan from the applicant but he did not see the elevations. The elevations shown is what started his concerns and believes it is out of proportion from the lot. He agrees with the other neighbors that the structure is too large for the lot. He thinks the applicant should modify their plans and remove the second story on the garage, which would help sun exposure for the neighbors. He lastly discusses drainage issues and he wishes to see what the drainage plan will be for this property. Cate Lowman Lowman says that when she realized the height of the building and the side of the house would be going out into the alley, it was despairing how much light the neighbors would be losing. She further discusses her concerns of losing sun exposure and how this will affect her backyard with the applicant's proposed design. She also mentions that she thinks the building looks like it is a multi -use building and that it does not seem to fit the character of Old Town. She brings up problems that can arise when having a