To: Board of County Commissioners
Through: Katherine Smith, Acting Director, Public Works and Development
Prepared By:
prepared
Molly Orkild-Larson, Principal Planner, Public Works and Development
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presenter
Presenter: Molly Orkild-Larson, Principal Planner, Public Works and Development
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Subject:
title
LDC25-002 - Group Living - Land Development Code Amendment
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Purpose and Request:
recommended action
The Planning Division is seeking approval from the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) on the proposed code amendment regarding group living in the Land Development Code.
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Alignment with Strategic Plan: Safe and Healthy Communities - Expand mental and behavioral health service partnerships, crisis response, and co-responder programs.
Background and Discussion: The Public Works and Development Department retained the services of Clarion Associates (Clarion) to draft a Land Development Code (LDC) amendment that would refine and clarify the definition of a group home to align with the Fair Housing Amendments Act (FHAA), establish residential occupancy limits as per the International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC), and include additional types of group living land uses in the permitted use table.
Presently, the LDC allows two types of Group Homes (A and B), and the Group Home definition is unclear and confusing. While reviewing a potential group residential facility, it came to the staff’s attention that code language and definitions needed refinement with respect to group living situations.
Additionally, in 2024, the Colorado legislature passed a bill (HB24-007) that prohibits municipalities from limiting the number of occupants that can reside in a household based on familial relationship. Before that law, many Colorado jurisdictions used a definition of “family” to limit the number of unrelated people who could share a home. With the changes adopted by HB24-007, local governments may limit occupancy only based on health and safety guidelines. Therefore, from a life safety perspective, municipalities may limit the number of beds (and occupants) based on the size of a room in order to allow for safe evacuation in the event of an emergency. Per the International Code Council, the “IPMC establishes minimum requirements for the maintenance of existing buildings through model code regulations that contain clear and specific property maintenance and property improvement provisions. The IPMC is a maintenance document intended to establish minimum maintenance standards for basic equipment, light, ventilation, heating, sanitation and fire safety… The IPMC provides for the regulation and safe use of existing structures in the interest of the social and economic welfare of the community.”
Daycare was originally part of this code amendment but was removed so that staff could further review these facilities and their compliance with State legislation.
Staff brought the draft code amendments to a BOCC study session in September 2025. At this meeting, the commissioners directed staff to continue processing this amendment and to provide them with a memorandum in the future to keep them apprised of this project. A memo was provided to the BOCC on June 17, 2026, identifying the changes to the code since September 2025, which is attached.
On August 4, 2026, staff conducted a study session to present the code amendments to the Planning Commission (PC). The Commissioners had questions and comments about the following topics:
- Whether Homeowner Associations can provide input on group homes in residential neighborhoods;
- Whether “Community Clinics” should be considered as a standalone land use;
- Whether “Social Media Houses” should be considered as a standalone land use;
- Doggy Daycare land uses and their relationship to “noise sensitive uses”.
A summary of the PC study session dated August 25, 2026, is provided in this packet.
This amendment was posted on the Arapahoe County website from August 19 to September 17, 2026, for public review and comment; only one comment was received. This individual had concerns about group homes located in his Aurora neighborhood. These concerns included parking, trash, and noise generated by these homes. In the County, group homes are a permitted use in residential zone districts; the Sheriff’s Office would address parking violations, and the Zoning Division would handle trash and noise complaints.
On October 6, 2026, the PC held a public hearing to discuss the proposed code amendment. Please see the attached PC staff report for additional details, including how the proposed amendment meets the review criteria for an amendment to the LDC. After the public hearing, the PC recommended approval of the draft Code amendment unanimously on a 5-0 vote.
Alternatives: The BOCC has the following alternatives:
1. Approve with conditions by staff or with alternative conditions.
2. Deny the code amendment application.
3. Continue to a date certain to obtain additional information.
Fiscal Impact: No fiscal impacts anticipated.
Alignment with Strategic Implementation Strategies: The attached framework helps Arapahoe County institutionalize values-based, transparent decision-making, documenting how we make decisions and carry out actions to achieve the county’s strategic plan.
Staff Recommendation: Staff have worked with Clarion Associates in crafting the draft regulations and have incorporated any necessary edits as a result of public comments and recommend approval of the draft code amendment as proposed. Staff recommends approval of the proposed group living code amendment.
Concurrence: Clarion Associates collaborated with County staff on this draft code amendment before the Board. In the public hearing held on October 6, 2026, the PC supported amending Group Living standards to the LDC and recommended approval to the BOCC with a vote of 5-0.