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Hearing officer gives homeowner 30 days to clear stored materials, address inoperable vehicles at 2007 Elmwood Ave
Summary
Broomfield planning staff documented stored materials and inoperable vehicles at 2007 Elmwood Avenue. At an administrative hearing, staff noted improvement but granted the homeowner an additional 30 days to finish cleanup and scheduled a follow-up inspection; no fine was imposed.
A Broomfield administrative hearing officer granted the resident at 2007 Elmwood Avenue 30 days to remove stored materials and address inoperable vehicles after planning staff documented ongoing violations, the hearing officer said.
Planning department staff presented photographs taken July 1, July 16 and July 25 that showed materials around a garage, tires stored in the yard and vehicles the department described as appearing inoperable. "So I think it's late June. We got a complaint about storage materials outside," Mr. Cowan, a planning department staff member, said while presenting the evidence.
The hearing matters because local code enforcement is intended to address safety and neighborhood conditions. Planning staff said they had sent a notice of violation on July 2 with a compliance date of July 11, reinspected on July 11 and again after a final notice sent by the law department on July 16 with a compliance date of July 23. Photos from the July 25 reinspection showed progress near the garage but remaining materials and at least one vehicle the department considered inoperable.
During the hearing, the resident, Karen Sloan, described the vehicles and stored items as personal property rather than trash and said family circumstances had limited the household's ability to tidy the yard. "It's not trash or anything, but, you know, she just lost her husband, like, a month ago," Sloan said, adding the household was trying to find places to store items in the garage or carport.
Staff and the hearing officer discussed the difference between an inoperable vehicle appearance and a vehicle with expired plates. Planning staff told Sloan that flat tires and other visible signs are what typically make a vehicle appear inoperable. "If the tires can remain inflated, that would solve that issue," Mr. Cowan said.
The hearing officer said a fine was unlikely in this case and announced the decision the board would issue: an additional 30 days from the date the resident received the hearing decision to complete cleanup, followed by a reinspection. "Give you an additional 30 days to get all this taken care of, and then we'll revisit it after the 30 days, see how we're looking," the hearing officer said. The officer added that the planning department is open to requests for more time if the resident communicates and demonstrates progress.
A commenter offered a local hauling contact as a low-cost option to remove items; the hauling contact was provided by an unnamed resident at the hearing. The planning department instructed the resident to contact staff if more time was needed and said it would issue the written decision and set the follow-up inspection date.
The hearing focused on enforcement procedure and compliance steps; no fine or other monetary penalty was imposed at the hearing. The planning department will return to inspect the property after the 30-day compliance period and determine whether further action is necessary.
