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Commissioner O'Connor stated that he also believed that if this plan came in first, it <br />would not have been something he would have approved. With respect to setbacks, he <br />stated that 30-35 feet would be appropriate. He noted that in the Exhibit A from <br />April 8th, the setback appears to be at least 30 feet back from the lawn in a couple of <br />areas and a little shorter in one or two corners. He indicated that he would like to see <br />heavy planting and the lawn retracted back to about 30 feet from the property line. He <br />stated that afour-foot tall berm should be put in place in lieu of lowering the grade. <br />Commissioner O'Connor added that the Commission is considering placing conditions <br />on an approval where the applicant has stated he does not want additional conditions <br />on his property. He noted that if Mr. Jeffrey is telling the Commission he is not going to <br />accept conditions or non-use of an area in his back yard, or he does not have the <br />money to put in more plants, Commissioner O'Connor thinks it is a moot point to place <br />conditions on the property. <br />Chair Blank stated that he feels the Commission must do the best job it can whether or <br />not the applicant or the appellants accept its decision. <br />Commissioner O'Connor stated that at the last meeting, the Commission made it clear <br />that it would go one of two ways: either put certain conditions on the property or revert <br />it back to its original state prior to grading. He noted that the applicant is now indicating <br />that he does not want conditions on his property, which, by default, would mean telling <br />us to put his property back to its original grade. He added that the Commission can <br />present some suggestions tonight, but absent any desire to work with their neighbors on <br />a compromise, the Commission is left with the option to require that it be returned to its <br />original grade, with the wall remaining in place as a four-foot tall wall is permitted. <br />Commissioner Fox indicated her agreement with Commissioner O'Connor's statements. <br />Chair Blank indicated that his original inclination was to simply vacate the Zoning <br />Administrator's decision and require the property to be returned to its original state. He <br />stated that he thinks the applicant has shown a disregard for the conditions and the <br />rules and that his lack of knowledge of the CC&R's, which was evident is the public <br />testimony at the last meeting, is something that he [Chair Blank] has a hard time dealing <br />with. He noted that should the Commission approve the project, he would be supportive <br />of a four- to five-foot tall berm and a 35-foot setback, and the wall should be moved to <br />where it is supposed to be. He added that if the applicant is not interested in having a <br />35-foot setback, then he should remove all the dirt and put the place back to its original <br />grade. He noted that over the last three-and-a-half years, this Commission has taken <br />an extraordinarily dim view of folks who either proceed and do things that are not <br />according to the plans they had submitted or once something has been appealed, <br />simply continue with their projects because they have not received a "stop order" notice. <br />He stated that it just does not feel right and that the landscape plan has to be right. <br />Commissioner Narum stated that she tends to agree with what Chair Blank is saying but <br />that she is struggling a bit with the fact that the applicant submitted an Exhibit A with a <br />EXCERPTS: PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES, September 24, 2008 Page 9 of 14 <br />