County attorney outlines phased update of San Juan County’s Unified Development Code (Title 18)

Amy Muir, the San Juan County prosecuting attorney, briefed the Planning Commission on a county‑led project to update the Unified Development Code (San Juan County Code Title 18). The project uses a two‑phase approach: first, reorganize and consolidate code sections for clarity and ease of use; second, prioritize and draft substantive code changes for council consideration.

Muir told commissioners the reorganization aims to group like topics (for example lighting or archaeological resources) so users do not need to search multiple chapters for related rules and said staff will add placeholders so future additions can be inserted cleanly. "This is a living document. It grows with the times," Muir said, adding the goal is to strike a balance between usability and site‑specific regulation.

The county council approved phase 1 (reorganization) on Dec. 10; Muir said her office is drafting the ordinance that will move sections and reorganize the table of contents, and that the first ordinance review will appear on the commission’s March agenda. She said some substantive edits will be inevitable when consolidating parallel provisions, because combining language requires amending existing sections.

Commissioners asked how consolidation would address duplicated provisions across geography‑specific sections; Muir said the project will consolidate by subject area so that, for example, countywide lighting requirements will appear in a single location rather than repeated in multiple place‑specific sections.

Muir encouraged commissioners to follow council discussion about values and priorities that will guide phase 2 substantive work and provided an email address where the public can submit comments on the code‑update process. She also said staff will return with the draft ordinance and additional materials for commission review before council takes final action.