Park County commissioners approved a variance that allows three accessory housing units in addition to a single-family residence on a property at 15 Road 6BU, subject to conditions requiring building and small wastewater permits, limiting use to private family occupancy, and a one-year recordation/start requirement.

Erica (planning and zoning staff) opened the public hearing describing the application by what the staff packet listed as "Glenda Sue Small;" the applicant who spoke at the hearing identified herself as Linda Sue Small. The board record shows the parcel is approximately 100.4 acres, with about 63 percent of the property in a General Rural 35-acre zoning district and the remaining 37 percent in a General Rural 5-acre district.

Staff told commissioners the 2015 Park County Development Standards and Regulations normally permit only one single-family dwelling and two accessory housing units on parcels of five acres or more; the variance procedure allows flexibility when strict application would create a hardship. Staff recommended conditions if the board granted the variance, including that approval would expire one year after the board-signed resolution unless required permits were obtained and construction commenced, that each housing unit must obtain required building and small wastewater permits before commencement, that the property and structures be for private family use only, and that the project comply with Park County development standards and regulations.

Applicant Linda Sue Small told the board the family has owned the property about 30 years, uses it for extended family gatherings and hunting season, and that two of the existing cabins are not habitable and lack kitchens. She said the plan is to demolish two existing cabins and build one new residence, and to upgrade septic systems to meet county standards. "Our family's grown. When we're all there, there's 17 of us," she said.

No public comments were received in writing prior to the hearing; staff said legal notices and agency notifications were completed and that Park County Public Works and Weed and Pest expressed no concerns. After public comment, a commissioner moved to close the hearing, and the board later moved and seconded to approve the variance as requested with the staff-recommended conditions. The motion passed on a voice vote.

Conditions the board attached to approval include commencement of required permits and construction within one year of the board-signed resolution and that the units remain in private family use; the board also noted similar variances have been granted previously and that the item aligns with planned revisions to development standards under the county’s DSR process.

What’s next: The applicant must obtain building and small wastewater permits from the planning and zoning department before beginning each housing unit, and the county will expect recordation of the resolution and evidence of work started within one year to avoid expiration of the variance.