Windsor tables housing plan, sends it to work session
The board set no date for the plan to return. Its proposed code changes include allowing duplexes in one residential district and raising the multiplex limit from six to eight units per lot in three others.
The Windsor Town Board tabled the 2026 Housing Action Plan on Sept. 28, sending it to a work session before considering it for approval.
The board did not set a return date, though members said they hoped to approve the plan before the end of the year. Staff said the town wanted to finish this year because its housing-planning grant expires at the end of January 2027, although the plan is not required by statute until 2028. Colorado local governments with populations over 5,000 must adopt an approved housing action plan by Jan. 1, 2028, and update it every six years.
Staff said it sought the delay because several issues remained unresolved and the consultant Matrix had not addressed all its comments. Staff wanted a plan that met statutory requirements and suited Windsor. A board member urged the town to meet at least the statutory minimum rather than go beyond it. “I don't want to see stuff in the plan that creates goals that we can't meet,” another board member said, citing the need to spend prudently.
The plan’s Housing Needs Assessment estimates Windsor had a housing gap of 1,326 to 2,702 units in 2023 and would need 6,359 to 7,734 additional units by 2033. It finds that approximately 60% of renter households spend more than 30% of their gross income on housing. The assessment puts the annual income needed to afford a typical rental unit at nearly $110,000 and a median-priced single-family home at nearly $200,000. It compares those figures with median incomes of approximately $68,308 for renter households and approximately $121,758 townwide.
The plan recommends changing development standards to use land more efficiently and allow a wider range of housing types, including more mixed-use opportunities and flexibility for accessory dwelling and live-work units. It proposes allowing duplexes in one residential district and raising the multiplex limit from six to eight units per lot in three others, among other changes. A presentation identified beginning a short-term Land Use Code amendment package as the next step.