County, city to consider Colorado Wildfire Resiliency Code on March 17; staff recommends concurrent adoption

Lake County staff told the board that the Colorado Wildfire Resiliency Code and its associated map are scheduled for consideration by the county board of commissioners and the city on March 17, with staff preparing a county resolution and the city preparing its ordinance. Staff said they had not proposed local amendments to the model code for the initial adoption and that the process is intended to meet the state timeline ahead of an April 1 implementation deadline.

Staff noted the existing state map currently identifies six mapped areas within the city limits but that most of the city is not mapped. The board discussed the possibility of later map amendments to reflect local mitigation efforts (for example, subdivision-level fuel treatments), and staff said the county’s GIS team is working to add wildfire hazard layers that can be shared with the public.

Chief Daly participated in the discussion on the city side and answered technical questions at the first-reading hearing. Staff emphasized that public clarity would improve if the county and city adoption documents are coordinated, and they said they would continue working with city staff and the county attorney to finalize separate adoption ordinances/resolutions for each jurisdiction.

Why it matters: Adopting the Colorado Wildfire Resiliency Code will change the model-building rules that apply in mapped hazard areas and may affect mitigation, permitting, and construction practices in areas where the state map is applied.

What’s next: Staff will continue to coordinate with city counterparts and the county attorney and will invite fire staff to future meetings to provide additional technical recommendations before formal county adoption hearings.