-From cheboygannews.com
Thomas Preston from High Bank Trams will be installing a power lift elevator at the Eric Freedman residence to help the property owners enjoy their property more easily.
The Cheboygan County Zoning Board of Appeals, ZBA, approved a 5.2-foot side setback variance for the elevator, which is located in a Lake and Stream Protection zoning district, at 7604 W. M-68 in Tuscarora Township.
“We’re trying to install an elevator outside the setback,” Preston said. “The need to install this elevator is due not to laziness or status, but for a mother and mother-in-law with both knee and hip replacements, and a son-in-law who is a leg amputee, to enjoy the property, as they cannot get down the stairs easily. The mother and mother-in-law don’t even go down, currently.”
Preston said he wants to install the incline elevator within the side setback distance, which is currently 8 feet, at the top side of the bluff on Burt Lake. The elevator will slope down the hill in a northwesterly direction, bringing it out of the setback distance after traveling roughly 10 feet.
“So, we are not requesting to be within the setback the entire distance down the hill, just right at the top,” Preston said. “The need for the variance is to put the elevator in the only location on the bluff where there is not a retaining wall.”
According to Preston, the other side of the property is being used for a stairway, which is where the other opening in the retaining wall is located. Therefore, the proposed location for the elevator is the only one which would work without having to remove retaining walls or trees, risking erosion.
The retaining wall was put in during construction of the home to retain the bank from eroding the foundation, because it was put close to the bluff. Preston does not want to jeopardize the integrity of the wall by taking portions of it away
If Preston were to comply with current side setback requirements, it would require removal of three very large trees. The removal of these trees also would potentially jeopardize the integrity of the retaining wall, due to their root base.
“The three-tree cluster is right at the end of the retaining wall,” Preston said. “We’re looking to go on the right side of the trees.”
Preston said they would be installing the elevator at an angle to avoid being in the setback distance the entire length of the elevator. The northwesterly direction brings them out of the setback zone and also saves additional trees down the bluff.
“These elevators are very eye-appealing and short of the carriage are constructed with a skeleton-like appearance, lying very close to the ground in the setback zone. By running it at this angle, we will make it less visible to the neighbors on the east side of the property, which is the setback side,” said Preston.
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