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RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS PER #P86
Richard and Barbara Stuart, 1109 12"' Avenue North, Edmonds, WA 98020
1. Special Circumstances. The rockery that holds up our driveway has become destabilized, and since the
City of Edmonds does not permit rockeries to be rebuilt, we are planning to replace it with a concrete block
retaining wall. We have been advised that it would be dangerous to replace the rockery with a wall with the
same footprint. The danger stems from the fact that the existing rockery would have to be removed in
order to create sufficient space for the geogrid that is needed to stabilize the contemplated replacement
wall. Removing the rockery and rebuilding its replacement must both be accomplished from above because
there is no lower access to the area. Removing this essential support for the driveway would compromise
its stability and expose the extremely heavy equipment and its operators to perils associated with the
potential collapse of the driveway. Therefore it is necessary to leave the present rockery in place and move
the footings of the new cement wall sufficiently far forward to allow for placement of the required
geo-rid. Fortunately, this can be done on a flat area that is entirely on our own property. We have been
advised that there is no safe alternative to this plan.
2. Special privilege. We are asking for permission to restore the driveway that is the only means of access
to our home. The reconstruction is entirely on our own property, abuts a heavily wooded utility easement,
and is not visible to any neighbor. All other residences in the area have the type of access to their homes
that this reconstruction Would alloW us to preserve.
3. Comprehensive Plan. The proposed wall to replace an existing compromised rockery has no land use
impact as defined in the City of Edmonds Comprehensive Plan (March, 2005). It Will have no impact on
neighborhood density, building height, traffic flow, or any other aspect of the quality of community life as
envisioned by the Plan.
4. Zoging Ordinance. Because the wall is designed to support an already existing driveway, it would have
no impact upon the zoning of this property which Will remain single-family residential consistent with its
RS -12 designation.
5. Not Detrimental. If approved and completed, this project would have absolutely no impact upon public
health, public safety, or community welfare, nor Would it have any possible impact upon the surrounding
properties. It will not be visible from or in any Way interfere With other properties.
6. Minimum Variance. As indicated above, reconstruction of the retaining wall must be done from above
because there is no access for heavy equipment from the bottom of the proposed wall. We have been
advised that We must leave the intact part of the rockery in order to safely support the equipment needed to
do the work. The proposed construction expands the footings of the retaining wall only as far as is
necessary to allow the Work to be done safely.