At its Sept. 20 hearing, the Board of County Commissioners adopted a new ordinance regarding distressed properties in Jefferson County, which was brought forward by the Sheriff's Office.

Previously the county did not have an ordinance for distressed properties and with the current state of the economy, the county had a rise in foreclosed or vacant properties. Some of these properties have become a safety and health concern for the community, especially for those that live nearby. It has become increasingly difficult to correct the situation and protect the community because these properties do not have a responsible party readily available to contact or even take responsibility for them.

The ordinance mandates a registry for vacant properties in foreclosure or vacant properties that are in a hazardous condition. The responsible party for a distressed property will have to register with Jeffco Planning & Zoning. The registry gives sheriff deputies and county staff a way to contact someone when public safety issues arise. The ordinance also gives the Sheriff's Office the authority to charge the responsible party with petty offenses and fines for violations.

Board Adopts Changes to County Policies

At its public hearing, the Board of County Commissioners (BCC) approved changes to five sections of the county's Policy Manual.  Policies are adopted by the BCC to provide direction to its departments, divisions, citizens and businesses. 

The first section updated was section 3.3.3, which is the county's administrative policy on beer, liquor and dance hall licenses. The amendment allows the county to issue a special event permit for the sale, by the drink only, of malt beverages or spirituous, or vinous liquors directly to the applicant, avoiding the delays of waiting for final action by the state, making the process more applicant friendly.

The second update was to section 2.2.9 regarding the Planning Commission. The amendment clarifies compliance with a state statute that allows flexibility in the number of planning commissioners. The commission can have up to nine members and three associate members, but not less than three.

The third change was to section 5.1.5, the chapter on business related travel for county staff. Previously, staff had a travel card separate from the procurement cards and now they will be able to use just one when traveling. The change is due to new technology in tracking travel expenditures.

The fourth change, to section 8.2.1, allows the county's Transportation and Engineering Division to implement a one vendor bus bench program instead of multiple vendors, cutting down on oversight costs and create a uniform bus bench system throughout Jeffco.

The final change was the addition of updated airport policies. The BCC adopted the Airport Rules and Regulations and the Airport Minimum Standards. The previous policies had been adopted in 2002. After a six month public input process, airport staff proposed the new polices that are more broad rules and will allow the airport manager to set the specific rule, regulations and minimum standards.

Efforts to continue updating and streamlining county processes will continue.  To view the county's policies and procedures click here.