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General Updates

2024 Dust Suppression: The Routt County Road & Bridge Department will be conducting its Mag Chloride application to our gravel county roads. Not all gravel roads maintained by the county receive Mag Chloride. For residents who live on county maintained gravel roads that don’t get Mag Chloride, they can have it applied to the county road near the residence at the property owners expense. Property owners that reside on roads not maintained by Routt County can reach out to the contractor directly to have it applied to their roads. The Mag Chloride application period is from the end of May to the end of July. If you would like to be considered for an application or have further questions, contact Tony Brown at 970.870.5344 by May 6, 2024.

CDOT US 40 Concrete Rehab Project: Concrete rehabilitation improvement work on US Highway 40 will occur near Steamboat Springs. Work will focus on ADA ramp improvements. There will be anticipated delays of 7-10 minutes when there is a high volume of traffic moving through the project area, such as the morning and evening commute. Work will take place from Mile Point 130.5 to MP 133.5. Traffic Impacts for Monday, April 29 to Friday, May 3:

• Westbound parking shoulder closures on US 40 from 3rd Street to 13th Street
• Monday and Tuesday will have single-lane and parking shoulder closures from 11th Street to 13th Street
• Tuesday and Wednesday will have single-lane and parking shoulder closures from 9th Street to 11th Street
• Wednesday and Thursday will have single-lane and parking shoulder closures from 7th Street to 9th Street
• Thursday and Friday will have single-lane and parking shoulder closures from 5th Street to 7th Street

Stay updated about this project:

• Project Webpage: codot.gov/projects/us40steamboatrehab
• Hotline: 970-875-6461
• Email: steamboatmainstrepairs@gmail.com

Routt County Noxious Weed Days: Please join the Routt County Noxious Weed Program, Noxious Weed Advisory Board and CSU Master Gardeners for Routt County Noxious Weed Days. Educational events open to the public to help residents with plant identification and noxious weed management. Two events will be offered the first on Thursday, May 23 and the second on Saturday, June 1 (dates weather dependent). Both events will be from 8:00 am-12:00 pm at 2300 County Shop Road, Steamboat Springs, CO 80487. These are drop in events, no reservations required. We encourage you to bring: 

• Any weed management questions you may have
• Plant specimens or photos to be identified
• Functioning handheld or backpack sprayer to be calibrated
• Appropriate PPE if you are wishing to receive up to five gallons of premixed herbicide solution. PPE should include: long sleeves, long pants, shoes with socks, and eye protection. Herbicide is to target whitetop and many other broadleaf weeds such as thistles, mullein and Houndstongue.  

Contact the Routt County Noxious Weed Program at weeds@co.routt.co.us or 970-870-5246 with any questions. Find all details online at Routt County | Weed Program.

Go solar, together! Sign up now for the Northwest Colorado Solar Co-op before it’s too late. The co-op closes to new members on June 30. Organized by nonprofit Solar United Neighbors (SUN), the Northwest Colorado Solar Co-op is leveraging the power of group buying to help members get a competitive price and quality solar installation. The solar co-op is open to homeowners and small business owners. After a competitive solar installer bidding process facilitated by SUN, a group of volunteers from the co-op will select a solar company to complete the co-op's installations. It’s free to join and there is no obligation to purchase solar. Sign up to learn more.

Reminders about Flood Safety: As the snow continues to melt and rivers and creeks start to rise, we would like to remind everyone about the importance of flood safety.

1. Turn around, don’t drown! Six inches of moving water can knock over an adult, and twelve inches of water can carry away a small vehicle.
2. Watch your step! Avoid walking in floodwaters as they may contain sewage and waste, contaminants, downed power lines, hidden objects that can injure you, and other hazards.
3. Avoid entering or getting too close to swift-moving water: the water is colder, deeper, and faster than you might expect, and vegetation and rocks near moving water can be icy and slippery. Make sure to closely watch kids and pets as they can fall in and be swept away.

For more information, including how to prepare your home for flooding and what to do after a flood, visit Routt County | Flooding.

Attend a Community Wildfire Mitigation Meeting: The Routt County Wildfire Mitigation Council, along with local fire districts, is hosting a series of regional Community Wildfire Mitigation meetings in May. Learn more about local projects, resources and steps you can take to decrease your vulnerability. Events are free to the public. Food and beverages will be provided. Registration is required. Bring a friend or neighbor!

• South Routt Wildfire Mitigation - Community Resources & Updates
• 5/8/24, 5:45-7:30 pm
• South Routt Community Center - Register online
• West Routt Wildfire Mitigation - Community Resources & Updates
• 5/2/24, 5:45-7:30 pm
• Hayden Center - Register online
• North Routt Wildfire Mitigation - Community Resources & Updates
• 5/14/24, 5:45-7:30 pm
• North Routt Community Charter School - Register online
• Steamboat Wildfire Mitigation - Community Resources & Updates
• 5/16/24, 5:45-7:30 pm
• Bud Werner Library - Register online

Fatherhood Skills Program: The Fatherhood Skills Program is a program designed to help fathers build and strengthen positive parenting attitudes and behaviors. It takes place on Wednesday evenings from May 1 to June 5, from 5:30-7:30 pm. The program is held at the Old Town Hot Springs classroom, located at 136 Lincoln Ave, Steamboat Springs. Childcare is provided for the duration of the program, and online registration is required to participate. The program costs $75, which includes meals and childcare for all six meetings. Find all details online, and contact aboness@co.routt.co.us with any questions.

News from the municipalities:

• Hayden
• Town of Oak Creek
• Town of Yampa

Stay Connected! There are lots of ways to stay connected to Routt County! For non-emergent news you can sign up for County News, follow Routt County on Facebook, Twitter Instagram or LinkedIn, and of course visit the County website.

Building Department Update

The Building Department currently continues to meet all published Plan Review Time Frames, as reminder our published review time frames are provided below. May and early June are the busiest times for Plan Review workload for all Departments, so please plan ahead and don’t expect reviews to be completed earlier than what is presented below. Our current weekly average of total number of permits under Plan Review Status is between 40 to 50 applications. In addition, we receive 15 to 20 Addendums on Issued Permits weekly for review.

Published Plan Review Timeframes for Addendums and Resubmittals

• All Addendums to all Issued Permits are five working days.
• Resubmittals for 2^nd, 3^rd, or 4^th round of Plan Reviews are five working days.

All First Round Plan Reviews of New Applications are listed below

• Three working day Plan Reviews: De-construction Permits, Residential Re-Roofing, Siding, Window and Door Replacement Permits.
• Five working day Plan Reviews: All interior renovations or alterations that do not involve any change in the building footprint including exterior decks without roofs. Exceptions that may increase this to ten working days are; significant Residential/Commercial Interior alterations that involve complete gut/remodel of the existing space or building, change in occupancy use that may affect zoning requirements, or significant structural alterations.
• Ten working day Plan Reviews: All New Construction or Additions for both residential and commercial buildings.
• 15 working day Plan Reviews: All New Construction or Additions of Commercial Buildings or Multi-Family Buildings that exceed 10,000 Square Feet

Planning Department Exterior Lighting Standards and Regulations

All of our Planning Departments across Routt County have regulations that apply to all exterior lighting on both residential properties and commercial properties. These regulations have been in place for decades and are important to follow and remind your clients of as designers and contractors. The main purpose of these Exterior Lighting Regulations are to protect and preserve our dark skies across the county, and to respect your neighbors and their privacy. This past year our Planning Departments have received a record number of complaints related to light fixtures being installed that do not adhere to the below regulations, these complaints are surfacing from adjacent neighboring properties, and they are an actual Code Violation under the Planning and Zoning Regulations. The majority of complaints are happening within the City of Steamboat Springs, then followed up by properties in Un-incorporated Routt County. It’s critical to understand, regardless if your HOA regulations were to accept or allow up-casting exterior light fixtures, your Local Planning and Zoning Regulations take precedence over any less stringent HOA regulations.

We respectfully ask all Designers, Contractors, and Property owners to follow our Local Planning and Zoning Regulations as they apply to Exterior Light Fixtures listed below. The Building Department staff has been tasked with checking all exterior light fixtures on all final inspections we perform on all permitted projects for our Planning Departments. Please note, your final TCO or CO approval of your Permit will not be approved if you have installed Exterior Light Fixtures that do not meet the Planning and Zoning Regulations provided below. We provide this outreach and education to assist you in advance. Please work with us and your clients to help spread the word. Please make sure you are installing compliant exterior light fixtures on all permitting projects moving forward.

Exterior Lighting Regulations and Standards per Planning and Zoning: For more Information or Support Contact your Local Planning and Zoning Department Directly

• Exterior Lights Must be Directed Downwards.
• Light sources shall be fully shielded so that the light source is not visible from adjacent properties and public rights-of-ways.
• Direct light emissions shall not cast onto adjacent properties.

Environmental Health Update

Milner Wastewater Treatment Plant Project: As you may be aware Routt County has been working toward rehabilitation of the collection system (sewer mains and manholes) and construction of a new Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) to replace the aging lagoon system. The availability of grant funding has presented a unique opportunity to upgrade the sewer system to serve the community with reliable service, support growth, and better meet compliance requirements into the future at a relatively low cost to the community. Duckels construction has been hired to perform construction and decommissioning of the lagoons. Mocon Pacific has been hired to rehabilitate the collection system. We’re happy to report that both Duckels and Mocon are local companies so monies spent on these projects will stay in the valley.

Duckels began excavations on Monday, April 22, this work should not affect the functionality of the sewer system. Mocon will begin work on May 20 (tentatively). The first step is scanning/CCTV the sewer lines. Once that is complete they will begin lining the mains and rehabilitating the man holes. This work will require short-term, limited use of the sewer system at different times depending on which zone the crew is working on. Mocon representatives will notify you in person when the work is planned and the duration.

Work on the collection system should be complete by the end of June. The new plant should be in service by the beginning of September. It is hoped that lagoon remediation will be completed this year but it’s possible that work will extend into the summer of 2025. Please contact the Environmental Health Department if you have any questions or concerns.  

Planning Department Update

Routt County Planning hosted joint hearings on April 18 and April 25 to review and discuss the draft language of the new Unified Development Code. Both joint hearings were comprised of the Routt County Planning Commission, Board of County Commissioners, Project Team, and members of the public who contributed valuable feedback. Whether you were able to join or not, the project’s website at Navigate Your Routt has all the latest information, including hearing recordings. Please visit the project website or reach out to the Planning Department at 970.879.2704 or by email at planningdept@co.routt.co.us with any questions or concerns. 

Public Health Update

STI Awareness Week & At-home STI Testing Free of Charge through the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment: April 14-20, 2024 was STI Awareness Week. STI Awareness Week provides an opportunity to raise awareness about sexually transmitted infections (STIs), how they impact our lives, and how to reduce STI-related stigma, fear, and discrimination. It is a week to ensure people have the tools and knowledge for prevention, testing, and treatment. Talk with your doctor about any questions or concerns you have about STIs and whether or not testing is recommended. Additionally, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment offers at-home STI test kits that can be ordered online at cdphe.mybinxhealth.com free of charge.

Vaccine Clinic at Hayden Valley Schools: Hayden Valley Schools, in partnership with Routt County Public Health, will host a mobile vaccine clinic at Hayden Valley School (300 Breeze Basin Blvd., Hayden, CO 81639) on May 8, 2024 from 3 pm-6pm. This clinic will focus on school-required routine vaccines for children. These vaccines are available at no cost for uninsured and underinsured Coloradans. Most health insurance plans also cover recommended vaccines for children at little or no cost. This mobile public health clinic accepts appointments in advance and walk-ups while supplies last. Save time and ensure your child is able to get vaccinated by making an appointment in advance online. 

Treasurer's Office Update

Property Tax Full Payment Deadline: Routt County Treasurer, Lane Iacovetto, would like to remind property owners that April 30, 2024 is the deadline for paying their property taxes as a full payment.

This deadline is for those taxpayers who do not have their property taxes paid by their mortgage company, and who choose to pay their taxes in one payment as opposed to two half payments. For property owners who pay in halves, the first half payment deadline was on February 29, 2024, and the second half payment deadline will be on June 15, 2024. 

For your convenience, there are several ways to make your payment. Property taxes can be paid online by credit/debit card or electronic check. There are no fees for electronic check payments. You may also mail payments to Routt County Treasurer, 522 Lincoln Ave Suite 22 in Steamboat Springs, CO 80487- payments must be mailed with a US Postal Service postmark on or before April 30 to be considered timely. If you would like to pay in person, you may drop off your payment in our office Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm, or use our secure 24-hour drop box located in the alleyway at 522 Lincoln Ave Suite 22 in Steamboat Springs. To ensure proper credit, please reference your account number(s) on your check and include your payment coupon(s). More information about payment options can be found online at Routt County | Property Tax.

Any questions should be directed to the Routt County Treasurer & Public Trustee’s Office at 970-870-5555.

Employment Opportunities

One Fun Thing

The Routt County Clerk and Recorder’s Office, Elections Division invites all Routt County high school students to submit their designs for a new “I Voted” sticker for the 2024 Presidential Election. The winning design will be included in mail ballot packets sent to all active registered voters in the County for the 2024 Presidential Election and will be available for voters who cast their votes at the VSPC. Please review all rules and entry details online, and see your school representative or contact Election Coordinator MacKenzie Gillespie at mgillespie@co.routt.co.us to submit your entry or ask any questions about the contest.