Equine business regulations may be completed this year

Larimer County is on schedule to wrap up work on new regulations for equine businesses by the end of the year.

The last of a series of public meetings sponsored by a group of volunteers will be held on Oct. 29 and Nov. 3. The group will present recommendations on ways the land use code could be changed to be more fair and useful.

The schedule follows:

• Oct. 29, 6 p.m., The Ranch, Thomas M. McKee Building, Crossroads Boulevard and Interstate 25, Loveland.
• Nov. 3, 6 p.m., Larimer County Courthouse Offices Building, hearing room, first floor, 200 W. Oak St., Fort Collins.

A component of the recommended changes is a transition program for businesses operating without county approval. The group wants the county to establish a program for a limited time, perhaps one year, to offer reduced fees and other considerations to encourage existing businesses to secure county approval.

Other changes include revisions to the land use definitions for horse businesses, a scalable system to determine an appropriate review process for businesses of different sizes and intensities, and changes to the improvement standards for facilities.

These recommendations will be forwarded to the planning commission and county commissioners for decisions in November and December.

Details of this project can be followed on Larimer County's project web site, www.larimer.org/horses. Information is also available from Rural Land Use Center director Linda Hoffmann at 498-7681 or lhoffmann@larimer.org.