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Westminster staff previews draft Unified Development Code; public comment open through Dec. 19
Summary
City planners presented a first draft of Westminster’s Unified Development Code Nov. 18 and invited public feedback through an interactive Conveyo site; the draft focuses on technical zoning, design and procedural rules and is intended to be implemented prospectively, staff said.
City of Westminster planning staff on Nov. 18 presented the first draft of a Unified Development Code (UDC), describing it as a technical rewrite of the city’s zoning and development rules and asking residents and commissioners for feedback.
"The UDC is a technical document. It's not a policy document per se," said Andrew Spurgeon, long range planner with the Community Services Department, in a presentation to the Planning Commission. Staff said policy choices remain in the city's comprehensive plan and other adopted plans; the UDC translates those policies into specific zoning, site and building standards.
Spurgeon outlined the draft’s organization — administration and enforcement, measurements and definitions, zoning, site and infrastructure standards, structure and form, development standards and procedures — and highlighted proposed provisions such as employment districts, adaptive reuse allowances, smaller-lot and missing-middle housing options, and adjustments to landscape and parking requirements. He said the UDC is intended to be implemented prospectively and is not intended to rezone land or replace the comprehensive plan.
Staff noted Westminster’s existing regulatory framework is dated (much of the municipal code dates from the late 1990s) and that the city has limited raw land remaining; the draft is intended to make rules clearer for redevelopment and infill situations. On parking the presentation said the draft proposes some reductions in minimum parking in certain contexts but does not eliminate minimum parking citywide.
The draft is posted on an interactive Conveyo platform (westminsterudc.conveyor.com) where the public can comment on specific lines of text; staff said the public comment period would remain open through Dec. 19 and that planners expect to return to the Planning Commission with a summary of comments and later bring the document to City Council, with a potential hearing in April 2026.
Spurgeon encouraged commissioners and the public to use the platform and noted staff had placed guiding questions inside the document to focus feedback. Commissioners thanked staff for the work and requested printed handouts with the web address for public distribution.
Next steps: the draft will remain available for online comment through Dec. 19; staff will compile feedback, bring a summary back to the Planning Commission, and later schedule formal public hearings as the document is refined.
