Planning commission forwards recommendations for two I‑25 billboard permits to county commissioners

The Pueblo County Planning Commission voted Sept. 17 to forward recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners to approve two special‑use permits that would allow construction of interstate‑facing billboard structures on parcels just north of Pueblo.

Planner Katrina Purcell told commissioners the two applications (SUP‑25‑3 and SUP‑25‑4) request placement of billboard advertising on small parcels in an A1 (large agricultural) zone adjacent to Interstate 25, about a mile north of the city of Pueblo and roughly a quarter‑mile east of the Pueblo West boundary. Purcell recommended forwarding the permits with the conditions outlined in the staff report.

Applicant Jason O’Brien of Palmer Advertising said the groups of signs will comply with state spacing requirements and county code. “State law does require that on the interstate highways, minimum distance between signs shall be 500 feet,” O’Brien said, and he said each group will meet or exceed that separation. O’Brien described the proposed faces as roughly 45% of the typical large interstate sign and said the company would apply for any required state permits.

County staff and a Public Works representative raised questions about vehicular access. Domingo Jimenez Garcia of Pueblo County Public Works asked whether the frontage roads are constructed and how vehicles would reach the parcels. O’Brien said he had identified access through adjacent industrial property and that he would pursue the required Colorado Department of Transportation permits. Planner Carmen Howard noted CDOT comments attached to the staff report and reiterated that any access or work in CDOT right‑of‑way will require CDOT permits.

The staff report and applicant materials identified technical constraints: parcel sizes of approximately 1.55 and 1.76 acres (A1 zoning), proposed sign faces substantially smaller than the largest interstate signs, and county code limits on sign dimensions (staff cited a 12‑by‑25‑foot maximum in the report). Purcell also referenced an earlier Planning Commission approval (09/21/2022) for a separate special‑use permit related to outdoor storage on another parcel in county files.

After the applicant presentation and public‑works questions, a commissioner moved and the commission voted to forward a recommendation of approval for SUP‑25‑3 to the Board of County Commissioners, with emphasis on the CDOT access permit requirement. The commission took a separate motion on SUP‑25‑4, which staff said is substantially identical; that recommendation was also forwarded. Chair Richard Arco announced the motions passed unanimously.

Next steps: the Board of County Commissioners will receive the Planning Commission’s recommendations and consider the special‑use permits and any permit conditions, and the applicant must obtain any CDOT permits required for access and for outdoor advertising.