This rural, mountain area is characterized by expansive views of natural terrain, abundant wildlife, quiet, relatively low levels of traffic, and high levels of privacy. These features, plus proximity to metropolitan Denver, are reasons the North Mountains is a "place of choice" for residents. The natural environment in the area should be respected and enhanced when development occurs.The housing recommendations in this section are intended to accommodate future housing needs in a way which is compatible with the unique resources of the North Mountains area. When development is proposed, the characteristics of the site are identified and development impacts are evaluated. It is during the development review process that wildlife and visually sensitive areas are identified, the capacity of the roads to carry additional traffic is determined, the water and sanitation concerns are noted, and the availability of essential services identified.
The other sections of this Plan, including the Mountain Site Design Criteria, contain more definitive recommendations which should be applied during the land development review process.
Provide for a diversity of housing opportunities consistent with the unique resources and constraints of the North Mountains area.
1. Housing development should complement the natural surroundings.
2. Housing development should have a minimal effect on the natural processes of the ecosystem.
3. Adequate facilities and services should be available to support the development.
4. A high level of privacy for existing and future residents should be achieved.
In addition to the following policies, applicable housing criteria in the Mountain Site Design Criteria section should be followed.
Red text identifies policies which can be applied in the land use review processes.
1. Rezonings should be processed as Planned Development.
2. New residential development should complement the character of the community, comply with the recommendations in other sections of this Plan, and comply with the applicable criteria in the Mountain Site Design Criteria section.
3. Land that is zoned and platted, or is exempted from platting, should be encouraged to comply with this Plan's recommendations and criteria in the Mountain Site Design Criteria section at the time of building permit application.
4. Development should be served by a fire protection district.
5. Excellence of site design should be based on conformance with the Mountain Site Design Criteria section for Excellent Project Design.
6. No development should be allowed in critical wildlife areas and the density earned by slope category may be located on another portion of a site. However, the "critical wildlife" designation should be applied in a reasoned way, not solely relying on lines drawn on a map (see maps). The Mountain Site Design Criteria and Wildlife sections should be reviewed for additional information and guidance.
7. No development should be allowed in the Geologic Hazard Overlay Zone District unless adequate mitigation or elimination of the potential hazard can be demonstrated. No transfer of density should be allowed from areas inside the Geologic Hazard Overlay Zone District.
8. In geologic hazard areas which are identified during analysis of a site, and which are not included in the Geological Hazard Overlay Zone District, the density earned by slope category may be transferred to another portion of a site.
9. In floodplain hazard areas on the Flood Plain Overlay Zone District adopted by the County and shown on the Environmental Constraints map (see maps), no credit for the transfer of density should be given, and only development which meets the County Floodplain Management regulations would be allowed.
(Recommendations 7 and 9 are based on the premise that the Geologic Hazard Overlay Zone and the Floodplain Overlay Zone District maps adopted by the County currently restrict development and therefore it is not reasonable to give a development transfer credit.)
10. Before development occurs, severe wildfire hazards should be mitigated to moderate or low hazard levels. Moderate wildfire hazards should be mitigated to a low hazard level.
11. Traffic generated by new development should not exceed the Level of Service recommended in the Transportation section of this Plan.
12. Within the visually sensitive areas shown on the Visual Resource maps (see maps), development should make maximum use of the site's existing vegetation to screen development. The appropriate recommendations in the Visual Resources and Mountain Site Design Criteria sections should be followed.
13. At rezoning, when lot sizes less than 10 acres are proposed, the recommendations in the Water and Sanitation section provide alternatives which should be applied to address water and sanitation problems.
14. When resource areas overlap on a site, the resource evaluation should balance the competing values of these resources to achieve the intent of this Plan.
15. Housing densities shown in this Plan should not be construed as guarantees of the number of residential units which may be built upon a site. The actual number of units is determined by applying the recommendations in this and other sections of this Plan and by the degree of compliance with criteria in the Mountain Site Design Criteria section.
16. The Jefferson County Land Development Regulation should be revised and updated to reflect modern planning and engineering principles.
1. Housing density for a site should be determined in the following manner:
a. First, based on a slope analysis, the acreage within the 0-30%, the 30-40%, and 40%+ slope categories is established.
b. Based on these acreages, the range of possible housing units is calculated using the following chart:
| Site Design | ||
| Slope | Standard | Excellent |
| 0%-30% | 1 du/10 ac | 1 du/5 ac |
| 30%-40% | 1 du /10 ac | 1 du/7 ac |
| 40%+ | 1 du/35 ac | 1 du/35 ac |
Under standard and excellent site design, units can be transferred off 40%+ slopes at a credit of 1 du/20 ac, to be built on the 0-40% slope portion of the site.
c. The actual number of housing units should be based on compliance with applicable recommendations in other sections of this Plan, including the Mountain Site Design Criteria section.
1. The total number of units allowed should be determined in the following way:
a. Compute the gross density by dividing the total site acreage by 2.5 acres per 1 dwelling unit.
b. Allocate the resulting number of units to the 0-40% slope area of the site.
c. Conform with applicable policies in the Plan and criteria in the Mountain Site Design Criteria section.
The maximum number of units can be earned when the proposed project conforms with the policies in the Plan, achieves excellent project design under the Mountain Site Design Criteria, is served by a public water and sanitation district, and meets the acceptable level of service for roads.
| Housing Units | Population1 | Projected Year of Buildout2 | |
|
Existing (1991)
|
940
|
2452
|
1992
|
|
Buildout of zoning approved as of 1991
|
3837
|
9899
|
2043
|
|
Buildout of Plan Recommendations:
|
|||
| Well & Septic | |||
| Average Design3 |
2791
|
7201
|
2031
|
| Average Design3 w/Transfer of Units4 |
3104
|
8008
|
2036
|
| Excellent Design3 |
4182
|
10790
|
2040
|
| Excellent Design3 w/Transfer of Units4 |
4915
|
12681
|
2051
|
| Public Water & Sanitation | |||
| Excellent Design3 |
512270
|
31657
|
2082
|
1 Calculated at 2.58 persons per household.
2 Buildout occurs - can vary with fluctuations in housing development activity.
3 Site design rating is subject to conformance with the Mountain Site Design Criteria and Plan policies.
4 Criteria related to the transfer of housing units is in the Housing section.
5 This number assumes the entire area would have public water and sanitation.
Methodology appears under Appendix heading: Housing