Consultants urge comprehensive zoning overhaul for Boulder City; council backs RFP to pursue update

Lisa Wise Consulting delivered a diagnostic review of Boulder City—s zoning code and recommended a comprehensive update to reduce reliance on variances, modernize zone standards and correct legal references.

The consulting team, led by Jen Murillo, told the City Council and Planning Commission that the city—s code has not been comprehensively updated in more than three decades and is creating friction for applicants and staff. "As much as I would love to say updating your zoning code is gonna fix all of your problems, it will not," Murillo said, but she explained the code is a tool to implement the master plan and protect the community—s character.

Ethan Stan, the lead associate on the study, said a recurring theme from 18 interviews was that variances are being used routinely instead of only for exceptions. "We have to use variances to show there—s a broken code," Stan said, and he recommended reforms including an expanded administrative-variance threshold (the consultants cited expanding typical administrative leeway to about 20 percent for many dimensional standards), a formal minor-revisions process for approved projects, and clearer administrative-interpretation procedures.

The report identified several structural problems: the general commercial (C2) zone is being used to implement multiple master-plan designations without context-specific standards; parking and sign rules are outdated; and the code—s organization forces users to flip across chapters. The consultants also flagged potential legal conflicts, saying some spacing and conditional-use rules for group homes and housing for persons with disabilities should be reviewed for consistency with the Fair Housing Act and updated Nevada law.

Murillo and Stan presented implementation options: a comprehensive update that would address zoning structure, design standards and legal compliance across the code, which the consultants estimated could take 12 to 18 months, or a phased approach that tackles high-priority items separately. Murillo noted some parts of the code (signs, procedures, legal cross-references) could be handled as targeted amendments.

Councilmembers pressed the consultants on specifics. Councilwoman Booth asked whether zoning can reserve land for affordable housing; Murillo said the zoning ordinance is distinct from map-level decisions and that density bonuses are the city—s preferred tool in its master plan. Council Member Walton and others asked how administrative variances would operate in practice; Murillo said objective caps and required findings for staff approval, plus the ability to elevate unusual cases to the planning commission, are common safeguards.

City staff said the current LWC contract covered the assessment only and that an implementation contract would require a separate RFP. Staff told the bodies that funds are available in the FY26 budget to pursue the next step and that they will begin drafting an RFP to hire a firm to carry the update forward. "We will start working on that RFP to hire a firm to do the actual implementation," staff told the meeting.

During the public-comment period, residents urged caution and clearer enforcement. Karen McManus warned the council to "be careful as you go about that process because, we will lose Boulder City" if changes are made too aggressively. A caller and other residents also urged improved code enforcement capacity and transparency around affordable-housing incentives.

No formal vote was taken; the study session ended with council and commission members indicating general support for a comprehensive update and staff committing to draft procurement documents to proceed to the next stage.