Land Development Code Update

About the Project

What is the Land Development Code?

Commerce City is updating its Land Development Code, a set of rules that guide how land in the city can be used and developed. The code regulates the form, use, and intensity of future development to ensure it aligns with the community’s vision for its built environment, as established in the city’s Comprehensive Plan.

What are the goals of the update?

The goals for the Commerce City Land Development Code (LDC) update are as follows:

  • Modernize the development code to better align with the community’s current needs, goals, and best practices.

  • Implement the policies and objectives of the Comprehensive Plan and other existing plans.

  • Organize the regulations into a simplified, logical code.

  • Tailor the development standards to achieve quality, resilient outcomes.

  • Streamline the review procedures to be clearer, illustrated, and less time-intensive.

  • Create a more user-friendly development code including more graphics and tables.

Project Timeline

Where We’ve Been

The Land Development Code update kicked off in the summer of 2023 to introduce the project to the community. The city hosted a series of public open houses, along with several focus groups and interviews, to begin identifying priorities and key issues for the update. Additional open houses were held in June 2024 and January 2025 to share draft concepts and gather community feedback. A public review draft of the Land Development Code was released in spring 2025 with multiple opportunities to review the draft and engage with the planning team in-person and online. 

Where We’re Headed

The public hearing draft, refined through community feedback and direction from the City Council and Planning Commission, is now available online. The adoption process will take place from September through November. See below for the public hearing dates.

Adoption Draft for City Council (clean)(PDF, 65MB)

Adoption Draft for City Council (redline)(PDF, 39MB)

Thank you for your input, whether you attended one of our public open houses, completed a short online survey, or provided comments on our public review draft. The public hearing draft will be presented to the Planning Commission and City Council during the adoption hearing process. The public hearings and their respective dates are as follows:

  • Planning Commission Hearing - Tuesday, Sept. 2
  • City Council Hearing 1st Reading - Monday, Oct. 6
  • City Council Hearing  2nd Reading  - Monday, Nov. 3

Once the new code is adopted, the city will work with the community on a legislative rezoning effort to bring properties under the new code. There will be more opportunities to learn about and engage with this effort early next year.

Project Contact

Sung won Han, Principal Planner
shan@c3gov.com | 303-227-8774

FAQ

How will these updates affect my property?

Once adopted, the new Land Development Code (LDC) will apply to all areas of Commerce City currently governed by the existing land development code and zoning map. The updated rules will apply to new development, redevelopment, and property improvements in these areas.

How can I get involved?

In Spring 2025, there will be multiple opportunities to engage with the public review draft, including attending open houses and completing online surveys to share feedback with the project team.

Why does the code need to get updated?

The city’s Land Development Code has not undergone a comprehensive update since 2009. While City Council has adopted and revised ordinances over time to make targeted updates to the code, this update offers a chance to take a more holistic approach—incorporating the latest planning and design practices while promoting high-quality development aligned with the city’s Comprehensive Plan.

 

 

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