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Minutes of the Meeting of June 24, 1999 Page 7 . The City Engineer stated the request was the vacation of drainage and utility easement for Lot 8, Block 7, )onnay's Northwood to allow the applicant to build a shed to within five feet of the lot line. He advised that Minnegasco has contacted the City and has no objection to the vacation. However, Connexus Energy contacted the City and they do object to the vacation as it would restrict the area available to them to safely maintain their infrastructure. Media One has contacted the City with no conflicts with the proposed vacation as long as proper clearance can be maintained between the proposed shed and existing overhead facilities. A property owner directly behind Lot 8 contacted the City and objected to the vacation as the proposed shed would be closer to their property, which they felt would blemish the appearance of their lot. The property owner represents a majority of the affected property owners abutting this easement. The property owner has been contacted regarding the objections. A resident, who resides at 8330 Oak Ridge Point, stated the power pole being mentioned was used by the utility company every time the transformer trips. He stated this vacation was in his back yard and he believes the small shed was actually a small building since it will be constructed on footings. He stated this building was very close to his back yard, in fact closer to his house and patio than to the petitioner's patio. He stated a ten -foot easement exists but the petitioner already set the footings at five feet. He stated he had alerted the petitioner of the need to contact City Hall to assure the setback but he did not take that advice and has now run into problems. He stated he was concerned about issues of aesthetics and suggested that neighbors work together to assure none are impacted. He stated he believes sheds are "tacky" and wished this one would not be built. However, he understands there were property rights to construct it ten feet from the property line. Tom Coughlin, 840 Oak Ridge Trail, stated he did call the City about the specifications to follow and was told it needed to be five feet off the fence line. He stated he had asked City staff about setbacks and indicated ie knew nothing about whether there were easements. Mr. Coughlin stated the building was actually about 5 feet 6 inches from the property line and there was no power pole within the area of the easement vacation. He stated he was not trying to get the shed location as close to his neighbors but, rather, to best utilize his back yard without placing it in the middle of the yard or to conflict with the existing gymnasium set. Mr. Coughlin stated he was going to construct it with a wood floor but found a concrete floor would be less expensive. He asserted he followed all of the City's rules and requested the easement be vacated. Chris Coughlin, 840 Oak Ridge Trail, stated they had a day care operation from their home and this was the only location that would work. She stated Connexus told her they don't want to approve the vacation but didn't appear to strongly object. She noted it was actually only a four -foot vacation. Ms. Coughlin stated they have laid rock around the shed foundation and will plant bushes and flowers to improve the view of the neighbor. Mr. Coughlin recommended that when residents call for information on a permit, the address be given so information can be sent to the resident. He restated the error was an accident and he did not intentionally cause a problem. The City Engineer stated informational booklets were available to residents. He noted that a number of works need a permit and the resident was responsible to ascertain whether a permit was required. If the resident does any work prior to that they were responsible. Dennis Anderson, Connexus Energy, stated they want to be a good community neighbor but it was , ecoming more difficult for them to maintain their utilities when property owners fence through the easement 1r plant trees and gardens. He stated that if anyone else makes a vacation request, he would suggest they be told not to build within the easement.