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Mr. Cummings replied that engineering is an exact science and is typically black and <br />white with calculations that can be compensated; but this is about trees that are organic <br />and do what they want. He reiterated that a fence can be fixed in one day but a tree <br />cannot be fixed. <br />Commissioner Nagler agreed that not all proposed solutions are trees, and that was <br />why he was asking if there is no solution, no matter how; that from his point of view, a <br />solid stucco wall is not a solution. <br />Mr. Cummings replied that he does not feel comfortable with any kind of architecture <br />that facilitates people lingering in their backyards where they can look into his backyard <br />Acting Chair Ritter noted that in one of the slides, the windows of the house are <br />changing slightly, although they would result in views similar to existing ones. <br />Mr. Cummings stated that he is uneasy with the whole construction but he is making a <br />compromise with that. He added that he feels he is being reasonable by objecting to <br />just this one balcony. <br />Gustavo Francken, neighbor, stated that he and his wife received the letter a month or <br />two ago, and they came down and took a look at the plans. He indicated that they do <br />not really have any issues with all the upgrades and thinks it will be really good in <br />general. He noted that they also did a remodel about a year- and -a -half ago on their <br />house and took about five months to complete. He further noted that it is extremely <br />expensive to remodel and wanted to know how long and how intrusive on the <br />neighborhood that would be. <br />Mr. Francken stated that he has no real issues at all with the plans except for the <br />balcony in the back. He indicated that they have a two -story Monterey -style house and <br />have two neighbors: one is a two -story Monterey style and the other is a single story. <br />He expressed concern that the balcony sets a precedent where none of the other <br />original Morrison Homes have ever had any kind of balcony. He noted that if his <br />neighbor decided to do the exact same thing and build a balcony on the back of his <br />house, that neighbor would have a clear view in their backyard, and he would be very <br />concerned about that and probably do the same thing the Cummings are doing. He <br />added that there is nothing permanent about trees and no real guarantee that the family <br />doing this addition will be there five years from now. He indicated that this is a great <br />neighborhood and that they do not have any issues with any of the neighbors, but once <br />that line is crossed, there is no going back. <br />Michael Smith stated that he has a very similar backyard with a pool, and a heritage <br />tree that needs pruning. He noted that the house plans are beautiful but was concerned <br />about the balcony as well because of the view into the neighbor's backyard. He also <br />expressed concern about setting a precedent, because no one knows what can happen <br />PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES, May 27, 2015 Page 7 of 18 <br />