8.2. SR 05-06-2013 - Laserfiche WebLink

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APR 2 9 2013 Mr Mayor-John Dietz, and whomever else I need to write a plea to, I am writing this letter after hearing from my realtor that I am not being allowed to split the empty lot off of my main home. For over 40 years my husband and I kept the primary residence lot and the empty lot next to it mowed, cleaned up, grass and trees planted and thriving, knowing that we could use that lot as an investment for when we retired. We always knew we would need to sell and downsize into a smaller home when we got old together. We paid our taxes on time, even though each year they rose from $300 a year to what it is today, $3466. We believed that Elk River was a place that respected and appreciated the people who wanted to make it their home. My husband of 37-1/2 years died March 7th of this year. One of the things he wanted me to do j was sell the house and the empty lot so I could pay off the medical bills and find a smaller senior citizen friendly home, medical-debt free. I contacted a realtor to begin the process. He went to the Sherburne County recorder and tax offices and was told I couldn't split the lot off. I was heartbroken. You have to know how much that extra money means to me, it means I can pay off Sill's medical debts and move into something I can handle. By not allowing this to happen, don't know how I can sell the combination of the two lots into one big one, when the rest of the homes up the street, along the river, are all smaller. It doesn't make sense or seem fair. don't understand why the neighbor on the other side of my empty lot has the same size lot (112' frontage, then back to the Mississippi) but I can't do anything with mine. The house next to our residence has 77' of frontage. The lot my home is on is 141'. Why doesn't Elk River want the additional tax revenue of having my 141' lot and splitting off the 112' empty lot? I walk down our quiet little street, and see many houses on lots that are smaller than what my empty lot frontage is, all going back to the river. Right at the intersection of Yale Street NW and 167th Ave NW there is a home on a lot that is 80' wide. The next 4 houses up Yale Street are all 111' frontage, and they all go back to the river. Why am I being forced to combined the lots I own, when the entire street is already developed and have much smaller lots? I urge you to take a drive down our little street, to see each home that has thriving young families, who love living on the river, so they can drop a fishing line in whenever they want, teach their kids the joy of living next to the Mississippi, have kids and pets who have space to live the good life we all dream about. The lots are not overly wide, but they do extend back to the river, so they are quite long. From the road you can't really tell how long the lots are. My two lots are well above flood level. Please reconsider the zoning of my two lots, to better reflect the development in our neighborhood. To increase tax revenue for Elk River. To be fair. Thank you for your consideration. Pat Bruchert