Montezuma County discusses 'rubbish' ordinance language and plans county cleanup days in May

County officials on April 14 discussed how to approach local rules on trash and nuisance properties, weighing whether to adopt a standalone 'rubbish' ordinance or clarify language inside the land‑use code.

Don and other staff said Planning & Zoning commissioners reviewed sample ordinances from Mesa, Montrose and Delta counties and are not opposed to an ordinance, but prefer referencing rubbish provisions in the land‑use code rather than rewriting the comprehensive plan. Commissioners flagged the central difficulty as defining what constitutes 'rubbish' versus broader 'blight.'

Attorney Karnowski told the board he had seen a draft legislative revision circulating among Morgan, Grand and Adams counties and said the bill appears to be a technical update intended to clarify the statute rather than substantially expand county powers: "the statute is sometimes just called the rubbish statute because that's what the statute gives counties the power to do is enact ordinances about rubbish," he said, and advised the county to monitor the bill before finalizing an ordinance.

Commissioners discussed practical alternatives—tipping‑fee waivers, organized cleanup days and outreach—emphasizing assistance and voluntary cleanup rather than punitive enforcement when funding or staff capacity is limited. The board said it set two county cleanup days in May with waived landfill tipping fees for those two days; staff will confirm the exact dates and cross‑jurisdictional coordination with municipalities.

Commissioners also noted that sanitation complaints can escalate into environmental concerns for neighbors when trash accumulates near road corridors; they asked staff to track the pending state bill and to consider land‑use code edits that address trash/rubbish specifically.

The board moved on to routine business after the discussion.