Assistant city attorney outlines 2025 state land-use bills; committee discusses legal response

Lena McClelland, assistant city attorney who advises Aurora’s planning team, briefed the Planning and Economic Development Policy Committee on June 11 about key land-use legislation from the recent state session.

McClelland summarized several bills she said the committee should note, including House Bill 25‑10‑56 on local government permitting for wireless telecommunications facilities; HB 25‑10‑93, which limits locally enacted laws that reduce permitted residential density in census-designated urban areas; HB 25‑11‑13 expanding limits on nonfunctional turf in new residential development; HB 25‑12‑72 creating a multifamily construction incentive program and fast-track approval for for‑sale multifamily condominiums; and HB 25‑12‑73, which requires some larger municipalities to allow a single exit for multifamily residential buildings up to five stories.

On HB 25‑10‑56, McClelland said the law provides that a telecommunications provider’s completed application to site or substantially change a wireless service facility is automatically approved if the local government does not act within 90 days; that 90‑day decision period may be tolled one time for up to 45 days if the local government lacks capacity and notifies the applicant in writing within 30 days of tolling. McClelland said that bill was signed by the governor on June 4 and is effective Jan. 1, 2026.

On HB 25‑10‑93, McClelland said the statute expands the prohibition on so‑called anti‑growth laws to generally applicable land‑use laws in census‑designated urban areas and prevents decreases in permitted residential density after July 1, 2025 unless an offsetting increase in permitted density is made elsewhere; she said the bill’s effective date is Aug. 6, 2025. McClelland said Aurora staff had not yet mapped which portions of the city are within census‑designated urban areas and that the city’s GIS team could determine that.

McClelland also covered HB 25‑12‑72 (multifamily construction incentive program), HB 25‑11‑13 (limits on nonfunctional turf in multifamily projects of more than 12 units), and HB 25‑12‑73 (residential building stair modernization—single exit up to five stories for municipalities of 100,000 or more served by an accredited fire authority), noting compliance deadlines where applicable and whether the acts are already effective.

Committee members asked follow‑up questions about how the census‑designated urban area is determined and whether Aurora is affected. McClelland said the designation comes from the U.S. Census and offered to take a deeper dive and return next month with an answer. Council Member Jurinski asked McClelland to send an email update to the committee and to loop in the city attorney (Pete Schulte). Jurinski also said she would like a lawsuit filed immediately regarding the bill that limits anti‑growth measures.

McClelland said no bills from the 2025 session are currently part of the city’s pending lawsuit, but she offered to discuss adding the 2025 bills with other jurisdictions that are parties to the lawsuit and to contact the city attorney.

McClelland encouraged committee members to read her memo in the meeting packet and to reach out by email with additional questions.