Community Engagement

We Want to Hear from Rio Grande County Residents

This is your future, you have a say in it!

Upcoming Events:

Planning & Zoning Commission (P&Z) Hearing:

The Planning & Zoning Commission will be holding a public hearing to discuss and vote on the final draft of the Solar Energy Facility Regulations.

Date: Tuesday, May 19th

Time: 2:30 PM

Location: County Courthouse

Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) Hearing:

The Board of County Commissioners will be holding a public hearing to discuss and vote on the final draft of the Solar Energy Facility Regulations.

Date: Wednesday, May 20th

Time: 1:30 PM

Location: County Courthouse

Past Events:

Project Kick-off Meeting

Tuesday, July 15th, the CPS team held a kicked-off meeting with the Planning and Zoning Commission and the Board of County Commissioners to discuss and agree upon scope of work, project timeline, project objectives, stakeholders, and develop a community engagement plan.

Joint Work Session #1

Wednesday, September 3rd, the first joint work session was held between the Board of County Commissioners and the Planning and Zoning Commission. The project team discussed the document review findings and reviewed the possible approach and framework to the County’s regulations. This included a discussion of each of the seven key policy areas that are most regularly mentioned in solar regulations.

Potato Festival

Saturday, September 6th, the Project Team set up a booth at the festival in Monte Vista. Festival attendees were invited to share their views on solar energy facilities using sticker-dot voting boards. Each board asked respondents to weigh in on different aspects of solar development. The preferences revealed by this activity helps us design regulations to support community priorities.

Joint Work Session #2

In October, CPS presented the initial draft regulations, identifying what “dials” are being designed and how they could be turned. In addition, an update on the proposed November Community Engagement event was discussed. There was also an opportunity for questions and initial feedback on the initial draft of regulations.

Community Open House #1

Wednesday, November 5th, the Project Team facilitated an open house to inform the public about renewable energy regulations and share feedback. Thank you for your participation and thoughtful comments and questions. Based on your insightful inputs, we anticipate making substantial changes to Accessory and Minor solar energy facility classifications. This will impact other aspects of the code such as design and operation standards as well as submittal requirements. As you review the current online draft, please keep in mind that changes will be made in the coming weeks. The next engagement opportunity will be a work session in mid-December. Stay tuned!

Joint Work Session #3

Thursday, December 18th, the Project Team contacted local stakeholders and subject matter experts that expressed interest in participating in a joint work session to discuss the best practices that could address the community’s priorities. We discussed feedback and amendments made to the initial draft since the open-house event.

Southern Rocky Mountain Agriculture Conference

February 3-5, Project Team members and the County set up a booth at the Southern Mountain Agricultural Conference in Monte Vista. We spoke with conference goers to share project information, verify draft language, and obtain feedback.

Joint Work Session #4

Monday, March 23rd, the Project Team presented comments and responses to the draft. The discussion was guided by the comments presented and led to changes that helped clarify terms and simplify the regulations.

Community Open House #2

Wednesday, March 18th, the Project Team will facilitated an open house for the public to share feedback on the renewable energy regulations that have been drafted with the public comments we have received in mind. We invite the communities to give input and bring any questions they may have.

Joint Work Session #5

Monday, April 20th, the Project Team presented updates that were made to the regulations. The Board of County Commissioners and Planning and Zoning Commission provided feedback and agreed that the regulations were good to go to hearings.