7-10 General

The following activities are exempt from Site Plan and Activity Envelope review if the activities are in compliance with the standards in Secs. 7-10-40 through 7-20-90 and are exempt from Scenic View Protection Review pursuant to Sec. 7-20-120 (c).

• (a) The Community Development Director may exempt agricultural buildings of less than 4,060 square feet (except for a barn of more than 20’ and up to 25’ to the midpoint of the roof on a lot/parcel of 10 to <20 acres) or greenhouses of less than 3,000 square feet from review, if the owner demonstrates that (1) there is no construction in a Constrained Area; and (2) the agricultural building is sited consistent with Sec. 7-20-120(e), Rural Character Guidelines for Building Locations; and (3) the agricultural building is not visible from the rights-of-way designated in Sec. 7-20-120(b), or has limited visual impact and the exterior and roof comply with Secs. 7-20-120(d)(11) and (12); and (4) the agricultural building maintains yard setbacks of at least one and a half times the required yard setbacks specified in Sec. 5-10
• (b) The Community Development Director may exempt remodeling, expansion or reconstruction of any existing legally created structure provided there is no expansion or construction of a structure into a Constrained Area. For the purposes of this exemption only, areas categorized as low wildfire hazard shall not be considered constrained areas.

(a) The intent of this Chapter 7 is to allow activities and development to take place where they comply with the provisions of this Land Use Code and with the Pitkin County Comprehensive Plan for the area. Compliance will generally involve avoidance of “Constrained Areas” through the identification of an “Activity Envelope,” as well as approval of a Site Plan. For purposes of Chapter 7, “Constrained Areas” include all areas included in each of the following categories, as defined and regulated by this Land Use Code: (i) Areas of Statewide Interest listed in C.R.S. 24-65.1-101 et. seq.), (ii) steep and potentially unstable slopes, (iii) water courses, drainage channels, and areas subject to erosion, (iv) floodplain hazard areas, (v) geological hazard areas, (vi) severe or low to moderate wildfire hazard areas, (vii) wildlife habitat areas, (viii) river and stream corridors and wetlands (ix) irrigated lands for food or crop production, (x) historic preservation areas, and (xi) archeological resource areas.

(b) The Site Plan process incorporates an “Activity Envelope” approach in which the County staff works with the applicant to determine which portions of the site (if any) would permit the proposed activity or development to be conducted in compliance with this Land Use Code and in conformity with the Comprehensive Plan for the area. In general, this process will involve both a determination of (i) which portions of the site are not available for development because of the existence of Constrained Areas, and (ii) of the remaining portions of the site, which areas would accommodate the activity or development so as to minimize impacts on surrounding properties, maximize compliance with the requirements of the development standards in this Chapter 7, and maximize compliance with the Comprehensive Plan goals and objectives.

(c) In general, the defined Activity Envelope for development of primary uses shall be large enough to accommodate the proposed principal use of the property and traditional permitted accessory structures, infrastructure (roads and septic systems), and uses, but should not be significantly larger than the area needed for such structures. In the case of a site with few Constrained Areas, the defined Activity Envelope may include more than one potential building site for a new single family home. The defined Activity Envelope may include non-contiguous areas (including separate areas for septic fields, landscaping, driveways to public roads, mitigation measures required in connection with any provision of this Chapter 7, and/or areas to be disturbed only during construction on the property – including staging areas and materials storage areas). Construction of trails will not require an Activity Envelope analysis except as required by Sec. 7-20-50.

(d) Clearing, grading or grubbing of two hundred (200) square feet or more in area, earthmoving of fifty (50) cubic yards or greater, or changes in the natural drainage of the site shall occur only after an Activity Envelope has been defined and all applicable local, state and federal permits have been obtained. In addition, Site Plan Approval is required if these activities will occur on a property within a Scenic View Protection Area and the development is not exempt pursuant to Sec. 7-20-120 (c).

(e) Activity Envelope and Site Plan Review for a Stream Restoration Project shall adhere to all development standards in 7-20-40 and 7-20-80 and shall be reviewed by the BOCC as set forth in Table 2-1.

(f) Once an Activity Envelope has been defined, the natural grade, topography, vegetation and drainage of areas outside the defined areas shall not be disturbed except as specifically permitted in this Land Use Code. Prior to any development activity on the parcel, the boundaries of the Activity Envelope shall be identified with construction fencing, and such fencing shall remain in place until development has been completed.

(g) While it is preferable to obtain approval of an Activity Envelope as part of the Site Plan approval process, applicants who are not prepared to submit a Site Plan for a specific structure may request approval of an Activity Envelope separately. Prior to the issuance of a Development Permit, the applicant shall be required to apply for and obtain approval of a Site Plan confirming that the proposed development is consistent with the defined Activity Envelope and with other standards in this Land Use Code not considered at the time the Activity Envelope was defined.

(h) The standards in this Chapter 7 shall be used (i) to identify the Activity Envelope on a property, (ii) to review and approve the Site Plan for proposed development, and (iii) to regulate development within the Activity Envelope pursuant to the Site Plan. Development Standards in this Chapter 7 which are to be reviewed as part of Activity Envelope and Site Plan review are set forth in Table 7-1 below.

When the property contains Constrained Areas where proposed activity or development could not comply with this Land Use Code or the Pitkin County Comprehensive Plan, the following order of priority shall be followed:

(a) Avoidance

• The activity or development shall be located on a portion of the site that is free from Constrained Areas and where the proposed activity or development would comply with this Land Use Code and the Comprehensive Plan, if such an area exists.

(b) Adjustment of Range, Size, or Intensity of Proposed Activity or Development or Activity

• If there is no adequately sized area on the property that would avoid Constrained Areas and would allow the proposed activity or development to occur in compliance with this Land Use Code and the Comprehensive Plan, the range of permitted activities and/or the permitted density or intensity of development and/or the maximum size of a permitted activity or development may be limited to bring the proposal into compliance with this Land Use Code and the Comprehensive Plan. If the Community Development Department determines that the proposed development can only occur in compliance with this Land Use Code and the Comprehensive Plan if the maximum structure size on a lot or parcel that is not subject to an FAR limitation is reduced to less than five thousand seven hundred fifty (5,750) square feet, the application shall automatically be converted to a One-Step Review before the Board of County Commissioners. The Scenic View Protection standards of Sec. 7-20-120 shall not be utilized to reduce the maximum gross floor area of permitted development to less than 5,750 square feet. Because the full impacts of a proposed development or activity can only be determined at the time of Site Plan review, this review will normally not occur if the applicant requests approval of an Activity Envelope alone, but will be reserved until submission of a Site Plan.

(c) Administrative Modification of Standards

1. If there is no adequately sized area on the property that would avoid Constrained Areas and would allow the proposed activity or development to occur in compliance with this Land Use Code and the Comprehensive Plan, even after adjustment of the proposed activity pursuant to subsection (b) above, because of the conflicting requirements of two or more standards, but an Administrative Modification of one or more standards pursuant to Sec. 2-20-10(c) would allow compliance with the remainder of the standards, then an Administrative Modification may be made.
2. In determining what type of Administrative Modification should be approved, the Community Development Director shall give priority to strict compliance with those standards affecting human health and safety over other development standards. In addition, the Community Development Director shall give priority to strict compliance with those standards affecting human health and safety and wildlife habitat areas over the scenic view protection standards and guidelines. For purposes of this Chapter 7, standards affecting human health and safety include Sec. 7-20-20; 7-20-40; 7-20-50; and 7-20-60.
3. Because the full impacts of a proposed development or activity can only be determined at the time of Site Plan review, this review will normally not occur if the applicant requests approval of an Activity Envelope alone, but will be reserved until submission of a Site Plan.