Woodland Park City Council on Thursday approved rezoning 309 Willow Street from Urban Residential to Central Business District so the property owners can legally operate a nonprimary short‑term rental there.

The decision followed a staff presentation, testimony from the applicants and a short public comment period. The council voted unanimously to adopt ordinance 15‑o‑3, series 2025, approving the zone change and setting the property’s use in line with the city’s updated short‑term rental rules.

City planning staff told council the owners applied July 11, 2025, and that the property has been operated as a short‑term rental since about February 2006. Planning staff noted that recent code changes (ordinance 14‑69, series 2023) permit nonprimary short‑term rental units only in commercial zone districts. The staff report said the subject lot currently borders Central Business District (CBD) zoning on two sides and that the property is served by city water and wastewater. The staff memo concluded the application has both supporting points and conflicts with the comprehensive master plan’s housing objective; staff referred the matter to the planning commission, which recommended approval by a 5–1 vote.

CJ, city planning staff, summarized the zoning context and explained why staff and planning commission treated the request as a location‑specific evaluation. “Since the Central Business District does border this property on two different sides of the property, the CBD zone district was the easy go‑to,” CJ said during the presentation.

Property owners Elizabeth Wirtz and Rob Horst addressed council. Wirtz said she and her husband have owned the house and a neighboring property for about 20 years and that they have hosted visitors there quietly and without complaints. “We host a two‑bedroom, two‑bath, four‑guest home, and we want to continue hosting guests,” Wirtz told council. Horst said they do not plan to sell in the near term and noted any future nonresidential use would be subject to the city’s review process.

A member of the public, Mindy (Woodland Park resident), urged the council to consider the application’s location and its support for local businesses and asked whether approval would set a precedent. Planning director Karen and planning staff replied that each rezoning application must be judged on its own merits and that staff would apply the same criteria to any similar future requests.

During deliberations some council members asked whether a more intentional approach—such as a broader zoning review or a work session about transitional zones—would be appropriate going forward. City staff and the planning director said the city could pursue a larger map or policy review, but that this quasi‑judicial hearing required the council to decide the current application on its facts and the code as written.

Council then moved and seconded approval of ordinance 15‑o‑3, and the roll call vote was yes from Council members Smith, Case, Bryant, Gere and Jones. The ordinance passed unanimously.

Background: Woodland Park’s short‑term rental regulations (ordinance 14‑69, series 2023) restrict nonprimary short‑term rentals to commercial zones; the council’s action rezones this specific parcel to allow the existing operation to comply with that rule. Any future redevelopment of the site would be subject to site plan review under the municipal code.

The council closed the public hearing after taking the vote; planning staff and the applicants will proceed under the new zoning designation.