Alamosa council approves budget amendment, temporary smoking ban and planning notice updates

At the close of its meeting the Alamosa City Council approved a package of routine but consequential items: a final budget amendment for 2025, a temporary smoking ban on trails and designated open spaces, an update to public-notice requirements for preliminary plats, and authorization to submit a local planning capacity grant application to the Colorado Department of Local Affairs (DOLA).

Budget amendment: Finance staff described the final-2025 adjustments — largely housekeeping to capture capital carryovers and grant activity, corrections to personnel line items and an update to workers’ compensation costs. Sales tax underperformed earlier projections, but higher-than-expected golf revenue and other adjustments reduced the budget gap to about $138,000. Council opened a public hearing (no comments) and adopted Resolution No. 5-2026 by unanimous vote.

Temporary smoking ban: Public-safety staff recommended a temporary smoking ban on trails and two designated open-space parcels to reduce wildfire risk; council approved the ban unanimously and asked staff to encourage property owners to reduce combustible debris on vacant lots.

UDC public-notice ordinance: Development services presented an ordinance to add public-notice standards for preliminary plats (posting the property, newspaper notice and mailed notice within 300 feet). No public comments were received during the hearing; council approved Ordinance No. 11-2026 on second reading, unanimously.

DOLA planning grant: The director of development services said the city has been awarded the funds in principle and only needed council authorization to submit the formal request; council approved the resolution to proceed.

What’s next: Staff will bring the technical paperwork (budget amendment, grant application, and implementation details) back to council as needed.