Greeley Zoning Attorney

Find the right Zoning Planning & Land Use attorney in Greeley, CO

Zoning Planning & Land Use Law in Colorado

The laws controlling how land can and cannot be used in Greeley, Colorado are fairly perplexing, and can be confusing to laypersons. This should provide a basic overview.

Local governments will usually divide the city or town into sections, called "zones," each of which is designated for a specific use, such as residential homes, commercial businesses, agriculture, manufacturing, etc. This process is known as "zoning."

There are a lot of rationales and purposes for zoning laws. In general, they're based in common sense: chemical plants shouldn't be built next to daycare centers, pig farms should not be built in the middle of a residential neighborhood, and other simple principles similar to that. Zoning laws, by keeping conflicting land uses separate, make life easier for all parties, ensuring that property values will be preserved, and that necessary industries can be conducted where they will not bother anyone.

On the other hand, zoning laws recognize and attempt to accommodate the necessity of factories and other industrial activities. They just seek to ensure that such activities are conducted in a way that they don't conflict with the rights of adjacent landowners to use and enjoy their property in peace.

Possible Outcomes of Boundary and Title Disputes in Greeley, Colorado

You have quite a few options if you find that a planned or prevailing use of your property breaks Greeley, Colorado's zoning regulations.

It should be evident that the first option you should consider is to correct the violation. If doing this wouldn't cost you very much, or pose a major inconvenience, you should obviously do this.

Of course, just fixing a zoning violation isn't always affordable or easy, and may interfere with your planned use of your property. For instance, you might have just undertaken a significant remodeling of your home, and later found out that some small part of it technically doesn't conform to Greeley, Colorado's zoning laws. If this happens to you, you can apply to your local zoning board for what's known as a "variance." This is simply a decree by the zoning board that the particular rule your property violates no longer applies. The Supreme Court has held that local zoning boards have to grant variances when the violation is very minor, and enforcing the ordinance would be unduly burdensome and not in the public interest.

Furthermore, if you have been residing on your property for a long time, and made improvements on it that complied with the zoning laws in effect at the time, a new zoning law that would be violated by your prevailing use of your property, the new law cannot be enforced against you. The U.S. Constitution bars the passage of "ex post facto," or retroactive, laws. Once the laws take effect, however, you'll have to comply with the new zoning laws with respect to any new improvements you want to make on your property.

What Can A Greeley, Colorado Attorney Do?

If you find yourself facing zoning or other land use issues, it's essential to have good legal advice. A reputable Greeley, Colorado attorney will help you work within the law to ensure that you are as free as possible to make the use of your land that you want.

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Life in Greeley

Greeley, Colorado is a city in Weld County. It is that county's largest city, and the county seat. It has a population of about 93,000 people, making it the 12th most populous city in Colorado.

Greeley began in 1869 as a community known as the "Union Colony of Colorado," an experimentalUtopiancommunity based on "temperance, religion, agriculture, education and family values." Over the decades, Union Colony, largely due to relocation and demographic changes, gradually evolved into a mainstream American city.

Modernly, the economy of Greeley, Colorado is based on healthcare, services, government employment, and insurance. One of the largest employers in Greeley, Colorado is the State Farm insurance company, which employs over 1,300 people, including a decent number of Greeley, Colorado lawyers.

Most lawyers in Greeley, Colorado, however, work in private practice. This means that if you need legal assistance, there's almost certainly a Greeley, Colorado attorney who can help you with your legal issues.

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