Bluff planning commission reviews town-attorney feedback on zoning rewrite, emphasizes clarity and consistency

Chair Malia Collins shared written responses from the town attorney during the April 16 work session, noting the attorney’s recommendation that critical terms be explicitly defined in Bluff’s zoning ordinance to support consistent enforcement. The attorney advised that, where appropriate, the commission may adopt definitions based on state law but should write the definitions into the local code rather than rely solely on external citations.

Commissioners discussed how to balance consistency and simplicity. One commissioner summarized the takeaway as: “If your town can stand up to the argument of consistency… every single time we told a developer that an acre is an acre, then no one can argue acre with us.” The commission agreed to cross-check state code language when adopting terms and to keep definitions clear and consistent to reduce future disputes.

Commissioner Anne Brown reported review of other small-town ordinances (Torrey, Altamont, Boulder, Huntsville) and said those municipalities tended to use fewer, simpler zones; several commissioners said simplifying Bluff’s zoning structure where feasible may improve usability while retaining protections for historic areas. Members discussed tools used by the state and cited practical guidance such as referencing state procedures for variances while providing the local definitions and criteria in Bluff’s code.

Next steps: commissioners agreed to continue drafting and cross-referencing definitions with state law and to identify where simplification is possible. The commission will return to this topic at a future meeting with recommended edits and a plan for how local definitions will be incorporated.