Wildridge, Colorado facts for kids

Wildridge, Colorado is located above the commercial core of Avon on the opposite side of the Eagle Valley from Beaver Creek. Note that hiking can be done over the peak to the Vail town side.

History

Geography

PUD Documents

Short Term Rental

While short term rentals were approved for the residents of Avon the Wildridge community was not able to enjoy this benefit due to the lack of management for the neighborhood association to work with residents to get a consensus for changes to the PUD.

Summary: On September 22, 2009, the Town Council approved first reading of Ordinance No. 09-12 establishing a Short Term Rental Overlay District and approved expanding the overlay zone district to include Eaglebend Drive, Nottingham Road, and the Wildridge Planned Unit Development (“PUD”), which includes Wildwood. This memorandum addresses legal issues raised by conflicts between the Short Term Rental Overlay district and the Wildridge PUD. A short term rental use cannot be approved for the Wildridge PUD through the adoption of an overlay zone district because the Wildridge PUD expressly excludes short term rental use. A PUD Amendment is the legally appropriate procedure to change or alter the current restriction of short term rentals in the Wildridge PUD.

Wildridge PUD: The Wildridge PUD was approved by the Town of Avon in 1981. Note 4 of the PUD Plat states:

Definitions: Dwelling Unit – one or more rooms in addition to a kitchen and bath facilities, in a permanent building, designed for use as a dwelling exclusively by one family or one or more human beings as an independent housekeeping unit and independent of other families: such dwellings shall not include mobile homes, hotels, lodge units, clubs, hospitals, temporary structures such as tents, railroad cars, trailers, motor homes or campers, campers, street cars, metal prefabrications sections or similar units. [emphasis added] The question of whether short term rental use is allowed in the Wildridge subdivision was recently litigated. The Colorado Court of Appeals ruled that the original 1979 zoning and the original Wildridge PUD language exclude short term rentals use, stating: The plain language of the subdivision plat and zoning ordinance defined permitted use of a "dwelling" to exclude use of the dwelling as a hotel or lodge unit. Because the subdivision plat and ordinance specified that the permitted use of the subject property was a duplex, and that such use of the duplex as a hotel or a lodge was not permitted, their objective import clearly was to prohibit uses inconsistent with the residential character of the area. See Town of Alta v. Ben Hame Corp., 836 P.2d 797, 801 (Utah Ct.App.1992); see also Ord. No. 79-12, art. V, § 5.1(f) ("In residential . . . districts, business or commercial activity is prohibited at all times except that limited home occupation offices may be allowed under special review uses in certain residential areas as specified in Section 3.2."). This reading of the subdivision plat and ordinance comports with the general purposes those regulations serve. Among the objectives to be served by zoning is to avoid mixing together of industrial, commercial, business, and residential uses. Cf. § 31-23-301, C.R.S.2006. The subdivision plat and ordinance should thus legitimately maintain the character of a residential neighborhood. Jackson & Co. (USA), Inc. v Town of Avon, 166 P.3d 297 (Colo. App. 2007). Due to the express language of the original Wildridge PUD approval and the direct ruling in the Jackson & Co case, an amendment to the Wildridge PUD is required to alter the prohibition on short term rental use. Both the Avon Municipal Code and state statute provide specific procedures for amending planned unit developments.1 Avon Municipal Code section 17.20.110(k)(2) requires the Town to provide notification to “owners of all property within the PUD that may be affected by the proposed amendment (as determined by the Community Development Director).” If required notice procedures are not properly followed, the local government may not approve an amendment to a planned unit development. Whatley v Summit County Board of County Commissioners, 77 P.3d 793 (Colo. App. 2003). Finally, the consent of property owners is not required to approve an amendment to a PUD, Whatley.