Wellington Growth Management Area Boundaries Set Despite Infrastructure Worries
Larimer County Planning Commission unanimously recommended approval October 15 of growth management area boundaries for Wellington, advancing a framework that will guide future development around the town despite residents' concerns about inadequate roads, water systems and other infrastructure.
The 7-0 vote sends the Wellington Growth Management Area overlay zone district to the Board of County Commissioners for final consideration. The boundaries will only take effect after county commissioners and the Wellington Town Board sign an intergovernmental agreement governing how the two jurisdictions will coordinate land use decisions in unincorporated areas surrounding the town.
The growth management area encompasses approximately 14 square miles of unincorporated land around Wellington's current borders, excluding agricultural properties where both the town's comprehensive plan and county zoning already designate farming uses. The overlay zone does not change existing property rights or current zoning, but establishes a framework for reviewing future subdivision proposals, rezonings and special use permits.
"This is just merely to say that we have a plan in place and that we can work with property owners in the future if they choose to develop their properties," said Matt Lafferty, principal planner for Larimer County Community Development Department.
Residents Cite Capacity Concerns
Multiple Wellington-area property owners testified against the proposal during the three-hour hearing, focusing primarily on infrastructure inadequacies they believe make the growth management area premature.
"We ain't got no infrastructure," said Curtis Bridges, who owns 360 acres of agricultural land in the area and served as Wellington's economic development director for seven years. "We're the only place that has a two-lane bridge going over I-25. If you try to get off the I-25 Wellington exit going north, good luck. You'll be sitting there for 10 minutes."
Bridges and other speakers cited Highway 1 congestion, water supply limitations and the town's aging downtown infrastructure as reasons to reject or delay the growth management boundaries.
Douglas Neal, a Wellington homeowner, urged commissioners to consider the timing of infrastructure improvements relative to development approvals. "My concern is that we do not only the improvements, but the pacing to match the improvements," he said.
Rodney Smith, who lives on County Road 62, questioned the land use framework shown in Wellington's comprehensive plan, arguing it emphasizes high-density affordable housing without adequate open space, recreation areas or custom home developments on larger lots.
Town's Infrastructure Plans
Wellington Planning Director Cody Bird assured commissioners the town has coordinated its growth management area boundaries with substantial infrastructure investments already completed or underway.
"When we laid out our comprehensive plan boundaries and the proposed future land use map, that was aligned with not only the types of development that would be indicative of the area for access to roads, access to rail, major intersections, we identified the land uses that would be appropriate for that, but also what infrastructure it would take to serve those areas," Bird said.
The town's water treatment plant recently underwent expansion increasing capacity from approximately 3 million gallons per day to support future growth, according to Wellington's comprehensive plan. The wastewater treatment facility has similarly been upgraded to handle additional flow as development occurs within the growth management area.
Bird emphasized that Wellington's board of trustees maintains a policy requiring written consent from property owners before considering annexation requests, contrary to some residents' concerns about forced annexation.
How the Overlay Zone Functions
The growth management area overlay zone supplements but does not replace existing county zoning designations. Property owners retain all current rights under their base zoning unless they request subdivisions, rezonings or special reviews triggering additional standards.
Under the framework established through the intergovernmental agreement, development proposals contiguous to Wellington's town limits would be referred to the town for potential annexation and processing under municipal regulations. Projects not adjacent to current town boundaries would be processed by the county with input from Wellington to ensure compatibility with the town's comprehensive plan.
The overlay zone requires county development approvals to conform "to the extent feasible" with Wellington's land use plans for the area, including standards for infrastructure, density and service provision, according to Larimer County Land Use Code provisions governing growth management areas.
County staff emphasized that any development proposal within the growth management area must demonstrate adequate public facilities and infrastructure capacity regardless of which jurisdiction processes the application.
Agricultural Areas Excluded
The proposed boundaries exclude several areas west of Highway 1 where Wellington's comprehensive plan designates agricultural uses that match existing county zoning. Lafferty explained that including agricultural areas in the growth management overlay would serve no purpose when both jurisdictions already regulate those properties for farming.
The boundaries also exclude a cooperative planning area at Wellington's southern edge where county officials are coordinating with the Town of Timnath and City of Fort Collins to address competing growth interests. That area may be incorporated into growth management boundaries in the future after additional intergovernmental discussions.
One property owner requested that four parcels south of the Wellington State Wildlife Area be excluded from the growth management boundaries, arguing the agricultural properties should remain under county-only jurisdiction. Commissioners did not modify the boundaries during their October 15 deliberations.
Approximately 250 property owners in unincorporated areas within the proposed growth management zone received first-class mailed notices of the rezoning proposal. County staff held a public open house meeting and accepted written comments throughout the review process.
Planning Jurisdiction Questions
Several commissioners sought clarification about the relationship between the growth management overlay and the town's comprehensive plan, which some residents criticized during public testimony.
"This is not an evaluation of the town's comprehensive plan," Lafferty told commissioners. "This is a matter of whether or not we are going to put a GMA boundary into place that would support that plan."
The Wellington Town Board adopted its comprehensive plan in 2020 following a multi-year community engagement process. That plan guides Wellington's land use decisions but does not bind county decision-making outside the growth management area framework.
Commissioner John Slutsky encouraged residents concerned about Wellington's land use vision to attend Wellington Planning Commission meetings, held the first Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. in the Libra Center.
Planning Commission Chair Lisa Chollet, a Wellington resident, echoed that sentiment. "Choices about development and about the comprehensive plan and all of that are made by that body, not this body," she said, referring to Wellington's municipal planning commission.
The Board of County Commissioners will consider final approval of the Wellington Growth Management Area overlay zone district at a future public hearing. The overlay zone will not take effect until both the county commissioners and Wellington Town Board execute the intergovernmental agreement governing development coordination in the area.
Public comment on the proposal remains open through the county commissioners' hearing process. County staff will present the planning commission's recommendation along with public testimony received during the review process.