Chapter 3 - § 3.5 • SUFFICIENCY OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT'S ORDINANCE OR RESOLUTION

• Jurisdiction: Colorado

§ 3.5 • SUFFICIENCY OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT'S ORDINANCE OR RESOLUTION

Because PUD ordinances vest much discretion in a planning commission, city council, and/or county commissioners, the Colorado courts have required that the ordinance meet each of the following requirements:

• It must contain sufficient standards against which the zoning authority's action may be measured.
• It must not be vague.
• It must be applied even-handedly.

A PUD ordinance must contain sufficient standards to serve the goals of allowing the flexibility that is the primary virtue of a PUD ordinance, while ensuring that a reviewing board's enhanced discretion will be guided by fairly predictable considerations, and that a benchmark for measuring the board's actions will be available in case of subsequent judicial review.³²

In one case, the Colorado Court of Appeals determined that a county's PUD regulations were adequate under the PUD Act where the regulations included such detailed standards as a definition of the calculation of density; a list of integrated uses in the statement of purpose; a requirement of narrative specifications dealing with density, allowable uses, and intensity of land use; and specified the minimum number of units or acres required. The regulations were also keyed to the availability of services, required geologic and soils reports, and included extensive submission requirements. The court held that the regulations provided adequate constraints on the county and established standards facilitating meaningful judicial review of the county's action.³³ Where an ordinance vests unreviewable discretion in a zoning authority, the ordinance...