BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT PUBLIC HEARING

Monday, March 17, 2008

Administrative Center – County Board Room

7:00 p.m. –   7:43 p.m. 

CALL TO ORDER

Howard Raymer, Jr., Committee Chair, called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.  Let the record show that this meeting is called in full compliance with the requirements of Wisconsin Open Meetings Law.

APPEAL NO. 2008-02  Chad Niegelsen, 1646 Bainbridge Street, La Crosse WI  54603.  Approval requested for alternate flood proofing measures in lieu of the required 15-ft perimeter fill.  A variance of 1-ft from the required floor elevation of 648.31 (1929 adj) is requested.  A variance is also requested from the required side yard as established by previous Appeal No. 8217, approved April 26, 1982.  The property is described as:  Part of Government Lot 7, Section 19, T 16 N, R 7 W.  Tax Parcel 4-793-0.  Town of Campbell.

Appearing in Favor:  Chad Niegelsen, 1646 Bainbridge Street, La Crosse WI  54603.  I have three requests:  First is a variance of 1-ft in elevation, first floor required to be 648.31 feet, I’m asking for 647.51 feet, a 9.5-inch ± variance, or 2.4 inches above what will be required after April 2, 2008.  After that date it is conforming.  Second request is for an engineered foundation in lieu of fill.  David Hallstrom drew those plans.  My designs are above FEMA minimum standards.  A 10-inch wide, 8-ft tall wall resting on a 12-inch thick, 3-ft 6-inch wide footing attached with number 4 rerod.  Third request is for side lot variance.  Six to eight feet of my addition will cross the 10-ft sideyard, to about 8 feet 9 inches from the side lot line or about an 18-inch variance. 

Question WEIBEL:  This is the approved plan?

Answer NIEGELSEN:  Yes.

Question WEIBEL:  The stamped copy in the file is the same copy you have there?
Answer NIEGELSEN:  Correct.

Question EILERTSON:  Chad, how is this a hardship? 

Answer NIEGELSEN:  The way my lot is laid out, we’re trying to put the children on the same floor as us, so we’ll add living space over the garage.  Trying to maintain adequate driveway distance in the front. 

Comment EILERTSON:  So all you’re doing is enlarging the garage?

Reply NIEGELSEN:  The upper is all living space.  The house layout is kind of unique.  Our living space and kitchen is upstairs.  We have a large mechanical room on the main floor.  This way we’d have us and our children on one level.

Question EILERTSON:  Is the storage building in the southeast corner staying?

Answer Niegelsen:  That is going.

Question RAYMER:  Do you have a drawing of the project?
Answer NIEGELSEN:  We have a site plan.

Correspondence:
WEIBEL:  One piece from the Town of Campbell dated March 12, 2008 stating no objections.  Of note, the DNR received the notice and site plan drawings, but we have no correspondence from them. 

Motion Eilertson/Houlihan to approve with the condition to remove the detached storage building.

Discussion.

Motion carried unanimously.

APPEAL NO. 2008-03  Michael Kreiling, 2537 2^nd Ave E, La Crosse WI  54603.  Permit denied to construct a 24-ft x 26-ft detached accessory garage that will exceed the 500 square foot limit for said buildings on this 7,210 square foot lot.  The property is described as:  Lot 29, Blk 2, Island Park Addition.  Tax Parcel 4-221-0.  Town of Campbell.

Appearing in Favor:  Michael Kreiling, 2537 2^nd Ave E, La Crosse WI  54601.  Want to tear down existing detached garage and construct a new one in the same place.  Lot is 103-ft x 70-ft, or 7,210 square feet.  We’re allowed only 500 square feet.  Lot size is just shy of being allowed 750 square feet.  Existing garage is 24-ft x 26-ft for 624 square feet.  Also have an 8-ft x 12-ft shed for 96 square feet.  Currently have 720 square feet.  We’re just short of lot size allowing 750 square feet and now have 720 square feet.  Both buildings in poor shape.  Due to repair costs, we’re better off to rebuild new.  We now have 720 square feet for storage, going to 500 square feet would be a hardship.  We’d tear down both buildings and use attic trusses for extra storage space, still staying under height limit.  This would be non-livable space.  We’d be reducing square feet for detached accessory buildings from 720 to 624.  This would not be contrary to public interest, gets us closer to conforming, more visually appealing.

Remark RAYMER:  There’s a big garage to the west of you, too.

Reply KREILING:  Correct.

Question EILERTSON:  So you’d be replacing what you have?

Answer KREILING:  Correct.

Question EILERTSON:  With upstairs storage.

Answer KREILING:  Correct, non-livable with no plumbing.

Question HOULIHAN:  There’s a power line fairly close to the existing garage, isn’t there?

Answer KREILING:  Correct, right behind the building, about 1½ to 2 feet back in the setback of the building. 

Question RAYMER:  Is there an easement?  It doesn’t show any on the map.  Normally that would be 5 feet in on each person’s lot.

Answer WEIBEL:  They can vary.  Could be 3 feet.  It’s an older plat and may not even show an easement.

It’s an older plat and may not even show an easement.

Comment RAYMER:  That’s something he’d want to check.

Comment HOULIHAN:  It wasn’t a problem with a flat root.  It could be now.

Question RAYMER:  They might have a problem with that roof peak.  Is that Xcel Energy?

Answer KREILING:  I believe it’s Xcel.  I can find out about that.

Comment RAYMER:  Now that you’re starting new – the one that’s there can stay, but new couldn’t go in an easement.

Correspondence:
WEIBEL:  Letter dated March 12, 2008 from the Town of Campbell stating no objection from the Town Board.

Discussion.

Motion Eilertson/Houlihan to approve with condition that appellant receives approval from utility company for new garage location.

Motion carried unanimously.

APPEAL NO. 2008-04  Donald and Marilyn Rieser, 19875 W Woodmore Trl, Antioch IL  60002.  Approval requested for alternate flood proofing measures in lieu of the required 15-ft perimeter fill.  A variance is requested for a 6-ft concrete walkway that will lie within the required average setback from the ordinary high water mark of Lake Onalaska.  A variance from the required setback from the centerline of Edgewater Lane is requested to construct an 8-ft x 21-ft entry deck to the front of the residence.  A permit is also denied to construct a detached accessory garage that will lie within the required 50-ft setback from the right-of-way of Edgewater Lane and within the required 75-ft setback from the ordinary high water mark of Lake Onalaska.  The property is described as:  Outlot 74 of the Assessor’s Plat of the NE¼ of Section 12, T 16 N,

R 8 W.  Tax Parcel 4-1701-0.  Located at 3053 Edgewater Lane.  Town of Campbell.

Appearing in Favor:  Donald Rieser, 19875 W Woodmore Trl, Antioch IL  60002.  If house or garage are substantially damaged after new FEMA regulations, cannot be rebuilt, unless in conformance.  That’s our goal, to raise the house 3 feet on an engineered foundation and maintain the house the way it is.  Existing garage elevation is too low.  It has to be rebuilt as a conforming structure so it can be replaced, should there be a flood.  On the house, will raise it 3 feet, remove decks and sidewalks.  Crawlspace will be filled once house is secured to foundation to base flood elevation (BFE).  New deck on east side of house to replace stairs, currently a concrete deck that goes from house to the street.  That will be razed when we raise the house.  We’ll take down old garage and replace it with a new 2-car garage.  We’ll move this back because it will be 2½ feet above street level.  It’ll be 5 feet from the house.  We’ll remove chain link fence and replace when construction is completed, around back of garage area.  You have copies of the engineered foundation plans – it’s quite substantial.  Hopefully we won’t worry about a spring flood again. 

Question WEIBEL:  The engineered plans we have on file – those are the plans you are requesting action on tonight?

Answer D. RIESER:  Yes, that’s correct. 

Question EILERTSON:  The deck is on the east or street side of the house.  Is that to provide ingress/egress?  It’s unusual to put a deck on the side opposite the water.

Answer D. RIESER:  The deck is on the side of house next to the kitchen.  We use it for barbecues.

Question EILERTSON:  There is a lot of concrete on this lot.  Is there any reason this couldn’t be same surface like power blocks or something that allows water to soak in.

Answer D. RIESER:  We are removing a lot of concrete and replacing what’s there – I can show you on this drawing (approaches the board – inaudible discussion).

Question RAYMER:  Mike do you have a question? 

Question WEIBEL:  I have a question on the detached accessory building – do you have a cost estimate?

Answer D. RIESER:  Yes we do, somewhere – why?

Reply WEIBEL:  I need it for the record.

Question RAYMER:  Why?

Answer WEIBEL:  They’re looking at a certain elevation for the garage floor.  If the garage is less than 600 square feet and less than $10,000 in cost.  It could be 2 feet lower than regional flood elevation.  So I want to verify that.  Is it less than $10,000?
Answer RIESER:  Yes.  I think it’s about $9,700.  I think Chad has a copy of the estimate.

Appearing in Favor:  Robert E. Lenox, 3050 Edgewater Lane, La Crosse WI  54603. 

Question RAYMER:  You’re across the street?

Answer LENOX:  Yes, I am here just to say I support it.

Appearing in Favor:  Marilyn Rieser, 19875 W Woodmore Trl, Antioch IL  60002.  I know you’d like to have paver blocks.  Right now we have the sidewalk that has protected our house because of the way the waves hit the house.  We’ve had the house in the family since 1966.  We had no washing because of the sidewalk.  That’s why we want concrete instead of blocks.

Appearing with Questions:  Ted Wilson, 3054 Edgewater Lane, La Crosse WI  54603.  I just want clarification on the garage.  I talked to Mike about the height and wanted clarification on how large the garage will be.  The new garage across the street has severely impacted my lot quality.  I commend them for the improvements and design they have.  I want to make sure we don’t have another large garage like the Lown’s down the street.

Remark RAYMER:  This is a detached garage.

Remark WEIBEL:  This will meet the 15-ft height limitation for this lot.

Correspondence:

WEIBEL:  A letter dated March 12, 2008 from the Town of Campbell stating no objections from the Town Board.  No further correspondence.  Once again for the record, the DNR did receive a notice of the hearing and the drawings.  We received no correspondence from the DNR.

Discussion:  (Inaudible).

Motion Eilertson/Houlihan to approve. 

Discussion.

Motion carried unanimously.

Motion Houlihan/Eilertson  to adjourn at 7:43 p.m.  Motion carried unanimously.

Meeting adjourned at 7:43 p.m.

Nate Sampson, Recorder