Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Land Use Code topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Fruita staff brief council on state-mandated turf ban and occupancy-rule changes
Summary
Planning staff updated council on two state-directed code changes: a prohibition on new nonfunctional turf installations under House Bill 25-1113 (grandfathering existing installations) and a change to residential-occupancy definitions under House Bill 24-1007 that removes the cap on non-related occupants (building-code occupancy limits still apply).
Fruita's planning director briefed council on two state-mandated updates to the city's land-use code that staff plan to move through the planning commission and back to council for formal action.
Henry (Planning Director) told council that Colorado House Bill 25-1113 requires municipalities to prohibit installation of nonfunctional turf on new projects. He said existing turf would remain legal nonconforming (grandfathered) but new site plans and developments would need to comply. Henry showed examples of narrow grass strips between sidewalks and streets and larger nonfunctional areas like the Family Health West parking lot strip to illustrate where the code would apply.
On residential occupancy, Henry said Colorado House Bill 24-1007 removes local definitions that limited a household to a specified number of non'related residents (the city currently has a four-person non-related cap). He explained the state-directed change requires municipalities to avoid such caps and rely on residential building-code occupant limits instead.
Council members asked whether changes would force property owners to retrofit existing yards when making minor improvements, how grandfathering would apply and whether there was any opt-out for Fruita. Mary Elizabeth Geiger, the city attorney, responded that the statute offers no opt-out and while the statute does not set specific fines, the state could seek an injunction to force compliance or adoption of an ordinance that complies with the statute.
Henry said staff plan to combine several state-mandated updates into a single amendment package to reduce repeated hearings; the amendments will go to planning commission for review and are expected back to council for second reading in March. Staff also said they intend to provide guidance for developers (a pamphlet or checklist) to explain local landscaping standards and acceptable native-plant options to ease compliance.
No ordinance was adopted at the meeting; council received the briefing and posed clarifying questions. Staff emphasized discretion would be used in applying rules to minor improvements so homeowners are not unduly burdened.
