Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Housing And Economic Development topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commissioners, planning staff highlight UDC changes and permitting, but note energy costs hinder large business recruitment
Summary
County commissioners and planning staff promoted recent Unified Development Code changes and streamlined permitting as tools to encourage housing development, while economic development leaders and commissioners said high local energy costs are a major barrier to recruiting large employers.
County leaders and planning staff at the town hall described local regulatory changes intended to ease housing development, while also saying broader market forces—including high industrial energy costs—are limiting the county’s ability to attract high‑paying employers that support homeownership.
Carmen Howard, Pueblo County planning director, summarized recent changes: the Unified Development Code (UDC) includes expanded housing options and accessory dwelling unit (ADU) provisions designed to add affordable housing types. She offered to brief residents on how the UDC provisions work and said the county is trying to streamline permitting processes to make development easier.
Commissioner comments and economic context Commissioner Paul McGeeter and Commissioner Miles Lucero said the county is pushing to make permitting and business‑facing processes more user‑friendly. McGeeter chairs a local business advisory council and said the goal is to reduce duplication across permitting entities. But commissioners and an economic development presenter said one major impediment to landing primary employers is high energy costs: “These companies cannot afford to operate… energy costs are so cost prohibitive that it makes Pueblo not feasible,” a commissioner said while describing recruitment challenges faced by PEDCO.
Barriers beyond zoning Speakers and staff noted developers also face infrastructure cost constraints—particularly the expense of water taps, septic complexity and the cost of bringing utilities to outer‑core lots. Commissioners suggested multiple strategies: emphasizing workforce and economic development to create higher‑paying local jobs; targeted infrastructure investment; and use of UDC flexibility to allow denser housing types such as duplexes and ADUs.
Where county will act next County staff and commissioners invited developers, neighborhood groups and residents to submit specific permitting pain points and said staff will continue to refine the permitting process. No new county programs or budgets were adopted at the meeting.
