Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Early Childhood Care Zoning topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Longmont council amends zoning to allow daycare centers in more residential districts
Summary
On July 22 the City Council approved first reading of Ordinance 2025-43, amended to permit commercial daycare/early childhood facilities in mixed-neighborhood zones and allow conditional (secondary) daycare uses in single-family and rural residential zones; the first-reading vote passed 6-1.
Longmont — The Longmont City Council on July 22 advanced a zoning change on first reading that will expand where commercial daycare and early childhood education centers can locate in the city.
Councilors amended Ordinance 2025-43 to add daycare centers as a permitted use in the RMN (mixed neighborhood) zoning district and as a conditional, secondary use in RSF (single-family) and RRU (rural) residential districts. The ordinance, as amended, passed first reading 6-1 with Councilor Christ opposing initially; Councilor Yarbrough was absent.
Councilor Popkin proposed the amendment to increase neighborhood access to child care and early education and said allowing smaller operations in mixed neighborhoods could complement existing services. “Allowing daycare centers as a permitted use in mixed neighborhoods and conditional in single-family and rural zones creates options without requiring development,” Popkin said.
Councilor Christ, who had pulled the item for discussion, voiced concern that establishing daycare centers in some commercial or residential locations could affect commercial site availability and asked that the city’s new LEDP (Economic Development) director be consulted. “I want daycare to be an advantage, not a disadvantage to our commercial sites,” Christ said, asking staff to work with LEDP before second reading.
City staff and the city attorney advised that council can amend ordinances on first or second reading and that planning staff would evaluate compatibility and buffer requirements during any conditional-use review. Planning staff noted that schools and places of worship are already permitted in many residential zones and that the amendment is intended to broaden options for early childhood education without mandating construction.
Councilors also discussed process: an amendment recognizing conditional secondary uses requires public hearings and planning review before a childcare operation could open in single-family or rural zones. Mayor Mary Peck and other members noted council would hear the ordinance again at second reading on Aug. 12, giving agencies and LEDP time to comment.
What’s next: Ordinance 2025-43 will return for second reading and public hearing on Aug. 12. Staff said conditional uses would require a buffer study and director-level review; subsequent businesses in proximity would also be reviewed for compatibility under land-use rules.
