CO Code § 30-28-101 (2021)
2021 Colorado Code|Title 30 - Government - County|Article 28 - County Planning and Building Codes|Part 1 - County Planning|§ 30-28-101. Definitions

 As used in this part 1, unless the context otherwise requires:    ”Disposition“ means a contract of sale resulting in the transfer of equitable title to an interest in subdivided land; an option to purchase an interest in subdivided land; a lease or an assignment of an interest in subdivided land; or any other conveyance of an interest in subdivided land which is not made pursuant to one of the foregoing.    ”Evidence“ means any map, table, chart, contract, or other document or testimony, prepared or certified by a qualified person to attest to a specific claim or condition, which evidence shall be relevant and competent and shall support the position maintained by the subdivider.    ”Municipal planning commission“ means any planning commission or other body charged with the functions of such commission of any city, city and county, or incorporated town, whether created pursuant to the authority of state statute or of home rule charter.    ”Planning commission“ means either a planning commission or, in a county where there is no planning commission, the board of county commissioners.    ”Plat“ means a map and supporting materials of certain described land prepared in accordance with subdivision regulations as an instrument for recording of real estate interests with the county clerk and recorder.    ”Preliminary plan“ means the map of a proposed subdivision and specified supporting materials, drawn and submitted in accordance with the requirements of adopted regulations, to permit the evaluation of the proposal prior to detailed engineering and design.    ”Region“ means the area encompassed by a regional planning commission, being the combined land areas subject to the jurisdiction of the participating governmental units.    ”Sketch plan“ means a map of a proposed subdivision, drawn and submitted in accordance with the requirements of adopted regulations, to evaluate feasibility and design characteristics at an early state in the planning.    ”Subdivider“ or ”developer“ means any person, firm, partnership, joint venture, association, or corporation participating as owner, promoter, developer, or sales agent in the planning, platting, development, promotion, sale, or lease of a subdivision.      ”Subdivision“ or ”subdivided land“ means any parcel of land in the state which is to be used for condominiums, apartments, or any other multiple-dwelling units, unless such land when previously subdivided was accompanied by a filing which complied with the provisions of this part 1 with substantially the same density, or which is divided into two or more parcels, separate interests, or interests in common, unless exempted under paragraph (b), (c), or (d) of this subsection (10). As used in this section, ”interests“ includes any and all interests in the surface of land but excludes any and all subsurface interests.    The terms ”subdivision“ and ”subdivided land“, as defined in paragraph (a) of this subsection (10), shall not apply to any division of land which creates parcels of land each of which comprises thirty-five or more acres of land and none of which is intended for use by multiple owners.    Unless the method of disposition is adopted for the purpose of evading this part 1, the terms ”subdivision“ and ”subdivided land“, as defined in paragraph (a) of this subsection (10), shall not apply to any division of land:   Which creates parcels of land, such that the land area of each of the parcels, when divided by the number of interests in any such parcel, results in thirty-five or more acres per interest;    Which could be created by any court in this state pursuant to the law of eminent domain, or by operation of law, or by order of any court in this state if the board of county commissioners of the county in which the property is situated is given timely notice of any such pending action by the court and given opportunity to join as a party in interest in such proceeding for the purpose of raising the issue of evasion of this part 1 prior to entry of the court order; and, if the board does not file an appropriate pleading within twenty days after receipt of such notice by the court, then such action may proceed before the court;    Which is created by a lien, mortgage, deed of trust, or any other security instrument;    Which is created by a security or unit of interest in any investment trust regulated under the laws of this state or any other interest in an investment entity;    Which creates cemetery lots;    Which creates an interest in oil, gas, minerals, or water which is severed from the surface ownership of real property;    Which is created by the acquisition of an interest in land in the name of a husband and wife or other persons in joint tenancy or as tenants in common, and any such interest shall be deemed for purposes of this subsection (10) as only one interest;    Which is created by the combination of contiguous parcels of land into one larger parcel. If the resulting parcel is less than thirty-five acres in land area, only one interest in said land shall be allowed. If the resulting parcel is greater than thirty-five acres in land area, such land area, divided by the number of interests in the resulting parcel, must result in thirty-five or more acres per interest. Easements and rights-of-way shall not be considered interests for purposes of this subparagraph (VIII).    Which is created by a contract concerning the sale of land which is contingent upon the purchaser's obtaining approval to subdivide, pursuant to this article and any applicable county regulations, the land which he is to acquire pursuant to the contract;    Which creates a cluster development pursuant to part 4 of this article.       The board of county commissioners may, pursuant to rules and regulations or resolution, exempt from this definition of the terms ”subdivision“ and ”subdivided land“ any division of land if the board of county commissioners determines that such division is not within the purposes of this part 1.       ”Subdivision improvements agreement“ means one or more security arrangements which a county shall accept to secure the actual cost of construction of such public improvements as are required by county subdivision regulations within the subdivision. The ”subdivision improvements agreement“ may include any one or a combination of the types of security or collateral listed in this subsection (11), and the subdivider may substitute security in order to release portions of the subdivision for sale. The types of collateral which may be used as security under the ”subdivision improvements agreement“ are as follows: Restrictions on the conveyance, sale, or transfer of any lot, lots, tract, or tracts of land within the subdivision as set forth on the plat or as recorded by separate instrument; performance or property bonds; private or public escrow agreements; loan commitments; assignments of receivables; liens on property; letters of credit; deposits of certified funds; or other similar surety agreements. Security, other than plat restrictions, required under the ”subdivision improvements agreement“ shall equal in value the cost of improvements to be completed but shall not be required on the portion of the subdivision subject to plat restriction. The county shall not require security arrangements with collateral arrangements in excess of the actual cost of construction of the public improvements. The amount of security may be incrementally reduced as subdivision improvements are completed.    ”Unincorporated“ means situated outside of cities and towns, so that, when used in connection with ”territory“, ”areas“, or the like, it covers, includes, and relates to territory or areas which are not within the boundaries of any city or town.      History. Source: L. 39: P. 309, § 28. CSA: C. 45A, § 28. CRS 53: §§ 106-2-28, 106-2-34. L. 59: P. 624, § 6. L. 61: P. 591, § 1. C.R.S. 1963: §§ 106-2-27, 106-2-33. L. 72: Pp. 499, 500, §§ 4, 5. L. 73: Pp. 1083, 1084, §§ 1, 1. L. 74: (3)(a) amended, p. 334, § 1, effective May 14. L. 75: (11) R&RE, p. 988, § 2, effective July 14. L. 77: (10)(a) amended, p. 1453, § 1, effective May 24; (10)(c)(II) R&RE, p. 1455, § 1, effective May 26. L. 83: (10)(c)(IX) added, p. 1250, § 1, effective May 20. L. 96: (10)(c)(X) added, p. 1880, § 1, effective June 6. History. Source: L. 39: P. 309, § 28. CSA: C. 45A, § 28. CRS 53: §§ 106-2-28, 106-2-34. L. 59: P. 624, § 6. L. 61: P. 591, § 1. C.R.S. 1963: §§ 106-2-27, 106-2-33. L. 72: Pp. 499, 500, §§ 4, 5. L. 73: Pp. 1083, 1084, §§ 1, 1. L. 74: (3)(a) amended, p. 334, § 1, effective May 14. L. 75: (11) R&RE, p. 988, § 2, effective July 14. L. 77: (10)(a) amended, p. 1453, § 1, effective May 24; (10)(c)(II) R&RE, p. 1455, § 1, effective May 26. L. 83: (10)(c)(IX) added, p. 1250, § 1, effective May 20. L. 96: (10)(c)(X) added, p. 1880, § 1, effective June 6.    Cross references:    For municipal planning and zoning, see § 31-23-101 et seq.    For definitions applicable to this article, see § 30-26-301 (2)(d).     ANNOTATION   Law reviews. For article, ”1974 Land Use Legislation in Colorado“, see 51 Den. L.J. 467 (1974). For article, ”Inverse Condemnation -- A Viable Alternative“, see 51 Den. L.J. 529 (1974). For article, ”Synthetic Fuels -- Policy and Regulation“, see 51 U. Colo. L. Rev. 465 (1980). For article, ”Cumulative Impact Assessment of Western Energy Development: Will it Happen?“, see 51 U. Colo. L. Rev. 551 (1980). For article, ”Winning the Rezoning“, see 11 Colo. Law. 634 (1982). For article, ”The Emerging Relationship Between Environmental Regulations and Colorado Water Law“, see 53 U. Colo. L. Rev. 597 (1982). For article, ”Governmental Issues Related to Real Estate Development“, see 11 Colo. Law. 2527 (1982). For article, ”Subdivision Improvement Requirements and Guarantees in Colorado“, see 14 Colo. Law. 554 (1985). For article, ”Local Government Exactions from Developers after Beaver Meadows“, see 16 Colo. Law. 42 (1987).   No authority to impose subdivision regulations on larger tracts. By the exemption of subsection (10)(b), the general assembly gave the counties no authority to impose subdivision regulations on the larger tracts. Pennobscot, Inc. v. Bd. of County Comm'rs, 642 P.2d 915 (Colo. 1982).   Or to adopt contrary definition of subdivision. Sections 29-20-101 to 29-20-107 do not confer the authority upon a county to adopt a definition of ”subdivision“ in its regulations which is contrary to the express statutory definition found in subsection (10). Pennobscot, Inc. v. Bd. of County Comm'rs, 642 P.2d 915 (Colo. 1982).   Power to adopt means to defray costs of considering exemption requests. Flowing from the grant of express power to grant exemptions from the provisions of title 30, article 8, is the implied power to adopt means to defray the costs of considering requests for exemptions. Hopkins v. Bd. of County Comm'rs, 193 Colo. 230 , 564 P.2d 415 (1977).   The requirement of a metes and bounds description of a tract for purposes of qualifying the tract for exemption from the limitations of § 30-28-110(4)(a) was not unreasonable or arbitrary, and the denial of the exemption was not an abuse of discretion. Hopkins v. Bd. of County Comm'rs, 193 Colo. 230 , 564 P.2d 415 (1977).   The exemption described in subsection (10)(b) is inapplicable where property owner seeks to construct multiple residences on the parcel which is more than 35 acres. Wilkinson v. Bd. of County Comm'rs, 872 P.2d 1269 (Colo. App. 1993).   Applied in VanHuysen v. Adams County Bd. of Adjustments, 41 Colo. App. 570, 588 P.2d 392 (1978); Theobald v. Bd. of County Comm'rs, 644 P.2d 942 (Colo. 1982); Beaver Meadows v. Bd. of County Comm'rs, 709 P.2d 928 (Colo. 1985).