Park County delays decision on three deannexation petitions from City of Powell

Park County commissioners on July 1 delayed action on petitions from three property owners asking to remove small parcels from the City of Powell, saying they want to notify the landowners and confirm access and utility easements before making a recommendation.

Planning Director Joy Hill told the board the petitions concern three parcels — submitted by Alan and Katie Griffin, Jason and Bobby Miller, and Eric Peterson — that the city included in an annexation ordinance originally approved Dec. 18, 1989 but not recorded until April 11, 2025. Hill said, “the petitioners are seeking approval to remove their properties from the part of the city of Powell that is approximately 1.1 miles North Northeast of the main part of the city. This is pursuant to statute 15 1 4 21.”

The board’s delay follows Hill’s recommendation that, before deannexation, the City of Powell record any necessary easements for access and utilities and that, after deannexation, the county rezone the parcels to GRP (General Rural Planning) — the district applied before the county acknowledged the 2025 recording. Hill read the recommendations to the commissioners and said the county assessor’s office has identified only modest tax differences if the parcels are removed from city rolls.

Hill and county staff described several complicating facts: the Miller and Peterson portions appear to have not been city-owned at the time the annexation ordinance was written; Bitter Creek separates the Miller and Peterson parcels from the lagoon property; and the Miller parcel proposed for deannexation is a smaller portion of a larger deeded parcel. County Engineer Brian Edwards flagged access as the main operational concern: the Miller and Peterson parcels appear to be reached from County Road 8 across land associated with the sewer lagoon, and it was not clear an easement exists. Sheriff Darryl Steward told the board his office’s records show no unusual emergency-service burden from the properties.

Commissioners pressed planning staff on legal and procedural limits. Commissioner Simone noted county regulations direct that territory deannexed from a city be zoned “transitional” and asked whether the county had authority to refuse that automatic designation. Hill said the regulations use the word “shall” but offered the recommendation to return the parcels to GRP given the recent county recognition of those parcels; she also said the commissioners may consult the county attorney about legal authority. The board directed staff to contact the petitioning landowners and placed the matter back on the July 15 agenda for further consideration.

The board voted to delay formal action pending landowner input; no ordinance, resolution or rezoning was adopted at the July 1 meeting.