April 4, 2006 CCP - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Mar-H. 2006 11:27AM No.20H P. 2 March 29, 2006 City Council Members City of Lake Elmo 3800 Leverne Avenue N Lake Elmo, MN 55042 Re: 8160 Hill Trail N Dear City Council Members: We are respectfully coming to you with this statement to make you aware of the substantial amount of time, concern and effort that took place during the design phase of this home and to correct false information from the prior meeting After several visits, by both the property owner and builder, to the Lake Elmo Planning office and listening to their concerns about the lot and its uniqueness we also sought out several experts to address concerns that were brought up. At the city level we had a number of discussions with Jim McNamara and Chuck Dillerud. The plan was originally designed to sit partially on the existing foundation and we were advised to design the home to step back further away from the OHW-, This seemed to be the foremost variance requirement. As the black mold in the basement, room for septic and lot coverage became concerns we addressed these by moving the placement of the house altogether, requiring the additional variance that is before you. Another design consideration was the height of the xoot]ine. We purposefully designed a modified story -and -a -half to keep the home smaller, In fact the height of the home should be quite similar to the current home and it will appear to be shorter than the homes next to us, as they are both on hills and we are sandwiched in a small valley. We have pictures of the surrounding homes from the take side and you will see a number that are three stories tall and considerably larger and that our plan does indeed At into the neighborhood. At the planning and zoning committee meeting we were even advised as to a color scheme that gives the appearance of blending in and down playing the home, a point that was duly noted and was already a part of our design. We also identified your council concern about the cold storage area on the north end of the house and are eliminating the access from the interior of the home. Unlike the surrounding homes we are not on a bill and are unable to build a home with a walk out basement, 'Therefore what is normally found in a basement (i.e. storage, utilities, and family/game rooms, etc.) are placed either on the main living area or on an upper level of this home, The DNR and Water Shed District were contacted and this home is well within their rules and guideknes for lot coverage. They were pleased to hear our plans included moving away from the lake, maintaining the shore line as well as preserving the mature oak trees that would naturally block the back side of the home from those who are enjoying the lake. In addition they recommended gutters and a rain garden to better