Montezuma County approves Bear Dance Ranch subdivision amendment, conditions future building on water connection

On Oct. 7, 2025 the Montezuma County Board of County Commissioners approved a common lot-line change and a subdivision amendment for property known as Bear Dance Ranch at 13550 Road 42 in Mancos, with a condition that any future building on the newly created lot must occur only after a potable water supply is available and connected.

The action splits a 23.61-acre parcel (Lot A) into two parcels and approves a minor lot-line adjustment that transfers roughly a half-acre from Lot A to an adjacent Lot B. Planning staff and the planning and zoning commission recommended approval, subject to a dedicated access easement and continued wildfire-mitigation measures for future development.

Planning staff member Don Arnoff described the proposal as a division that would leave the existing house on a roughly 10-acre front parcel and a roughly 12-acre vacant parcel in the rear. He told commissioners the application included a dedicated easement for driveway access and that wildfire-adaptive recommendations made at the original subdivision would continue to apply. Steven (planning staff) read the relevant land use code language, noting that “it says an adequate supply of potable water shall be available to each lot in a subdivision,” and that cisterns are allowed only when no potable supply exists and may be installed by a lot buyer.

Commissioners and staff discussed the status of a proposed Mancos-area water line. Planning staff said construction drawings are about 90% complete but funding remains uncertain; a speaker in the meeting said the planned system includes a 20,000‑gallon storage tank and a 4‑inch main and currently lists about 27 members. Applicants William Voyles and Catherine Voyles said the couple wants to retain part of the property in the family while reserving the option to sell the front parcel once the water system is in place. William Voyles said, “We would definitely like the option to sell the front once the water system is in to be able to do that.”

After debate about the risk of creating a parcel that might later lack a reliable municipal supply, the board approved two motions: one to accept the common lot-line change to Lots A and B, and a second to approve the subdivision amendment to divide Lot A, with the explicit contingency that an available potable water supply must be connected prior to any building on the newly created lot. The board recorded three affirmative votes.

The planning department noted that if the water line is constructed, properties on the line would be expected to connect and that the water project’s membership and funding details remain subject to separate agreements outside the county’s land-use decision. The board’s approval preserves the lot-line adjustment now while tying development rights for the new parcel to the future delivery of potable water.

The decision closes the public hearing on the application; staff said they will record the required documents and the contingency in the subdivision approval package.