Zoning that restricts RV use on your own land

[glennts]

Have 37 acres in Colorado and the Huefano County land use regulators regard RV use on your own land as camping. They restrict this activity to 7 days out of 30 and 30 days out of the year. Has anyone had experience in dealing with this sort of thing and have you found a way around it?

[dedmiston]

glennts wrote:
Updating this thread on dealing with County camping restrictions. I'm talking no more than 7 days out of 30 and 30 days out of a year and using an RV is considered camping. Decided on the 'better to apologize than ask permission' approach and RV camped on my land for June - Sept last year and May - Oct this year.

Works for me.

Holy cow? Bumping a five year old thread?

Let's not do that.

[ferndaleflyer]

Lantly you are right about it being in Baltimore county but my daughter lives on Oella and her address is Ellicott City. Kind of like our old place in WV where town was in to counties. I know she was pretty concerned at one time about it closing. I have a daughter and a son there, one on each side of the river.

But concerning the OP I have a place on Aviation Blvd at the BWI airport and have never had a problem parking a RV there. Sometimes you need to confront the officials running the place and beat them at their own game.

[JRscooby]

Once again, a long thread with lots of political undertones. What I have to say is likely to offend mods, but it is not met to push one side or the other.

I can't say much about the OP's problem, but think about how most local ordinances come about. Some old biddy (of any age or sex) sees something they don't like. They tell their city counsel rep. No this rep wants to do something to make voters happy, so he brings it up at meeting. They decide to discuss it at the next 3 meetings. The rep wants to make sure he gets credit so invites biddy to next meeting. Now the average voter is more likely to be able to tell us who got a home run in last Friday's high school football game than what happened at a city counsel meeting, nobody shows up to speak against. So the reps do what they are supposed to, make a rule the people want. Then when somebody has the rule enforced against, we discover it exists, and maybe start to fight against.
Often said democracy is not a spectator sport. But in most cases, we don't even watch.

[Lantley]

ferndaleflyer wrote:
I liked the reference to a "slaughter house' in a residential area. I think Elicott City, MD is about as yuppy, high end as you can get and there is a slaughter house right in the middle of it....

Also in MD in my county a few years back they tried to pass an ordinence prohibiting all sorts of storage--boats, SUVs, untagged cars, firewood, RVs of all types etc on your own property. That all went down in flames when I went to the county council meeting and pointed out that the council president had an RV and an untagged trailer on her property.

I think the slaughter house you refer to is in Oella,MD not Ellicott City.
Yes it is close next town over. The slaughter house is in Baltimore.Co. not Howard Co.
You are correct the area has become quite upscale now.
Wasn't too long ago many of the house still had out houses and did not have indoor plumbing.

[ferndaleflyer]

I liked the reference to a "slaughter house' in a residential area. I think Elicott City, MD is about as yuppy, high end as you can get and there is a slaughter house right in the middle of it....

Also in MD in my county a few years back they tried to pass an ordinence prohibiting all sorts of storage--boats, SUVs, untagged cars, firewood, RVs of all types etc on your own property. That all went down in flames when I went to the county council meeting and pointed out that the council president had an RV and an untagged trailer on her property.

[time2roll]

glennts wrote:
Updating this thread on dealing with County camping restrictions. I'm talking no more than 7 days out of 30 and 30 days out of a year and using an RV is considered camping. Decided on the 'better to apologize than ask permission' approach and RV camped on my land for June - Sept last year and May - Oct this year.

Works for me.

Dang that took only five years to sort out.

[glennts]

Updating this thread on dealing with County camping restrictions. I'm talking no more than 7 days out of 30 and 30 days out of a year and using an RV is considered camping. Decided on the 'better to apologize than ask permission' approach and RV camped on my land for June - Sept last year and May - Oct this year.

Works for me.

[glennts]

Grit dog... Occasionally I get called to keep an eye on oil rigs that are idle and stacked in order to discourage copper thieves.

In Huefano County my land is zoned agricultural which then limits lot size to 35 acres. You would need at least 70 acres to subdivide. The HOA, Centennial and Aspen Mountain Ranch, is receptive to RV's providing you have a solution for septic issues.

If anyone wants to check out this area go to www.landwatch.com and enter Custer County, CO. into the search box. That's how I found this property.

[Grit_dog]

Glen, beautiful view! Can't wait until we have time to get back to CO on a regular basis!

You mentioned gate guard duty, which I'll assume means it's a rural "gated" community and thus also has permanent homes?
I also know land is cheap down there (cheap is relative to everyone), so it's very conceivable that someone could buy or somehow get onto that land and then live in their broke down scuzzy old rv full time and just generally be a mess and eyesore, including sewage dumping. With that in mind, I'd imagine that is intent of the ordinance and it is a good thing In general.
I agree with you that it's ridiculous for those that just spent hard earned $ on their little (big in your case) slice of heaven. Glad you got it worked out. So much win there!

We purchased some property up near FairPlay that is not part of, but is surrounded by a subdivision with 'gulp' covenants, out in the middle of bfe nowhere. The subdivision is anywhere from 2ac to 35ac lots and everything from people rving in the summer, to cabins, to custom homes. I was very interested in the land use restrictions surrounding our property for reasons of future value, personal interest should we ever use it to rv or build on it, or in the event I subdivide it and develop it.
The rules there are such that RVs must be moved off the lots in the winter and there's even a rv storage area for residents. In my mind it's a good way to control someone who's trashy low class scraping together just enough to get ahold of one of the small lots and trashing the place out.
Glad you got it worked out. Enjoy!

[d3500ram]

tmm2good wrote:
.... Guess ignorance is bliss...

Ignorance is bliss... and so is your view!

[Ski_Pro_3]

MrWizard wrote:
I'll give you a good laugh
2012 went back to Indiana to visit family
I was parked in front of my brother's place
He left for the July 4th week, family vacation
New Neighbor across the street called the cops and complained
The small town where I grew up has an ordinance against campers on the street
So we moved to the local state park
My brother comes home finds out what happen, talks to the powers that be
And finds out any place on property off street is legal
He trimmed the biggest limb on his biggest tree
And we spent 6 weeks parked on his front lawn in full view of his neighbor
My brother died 3 months later of his colon cancer
He didn't give a **** what the new neighbor across the street thought
He lived there almost 30 years, he was only 62.. I'm sorry he gone
But we had a great visit and was glad to see him before he passed
Ill considerate people are the reason for most zoning regulations
Know the the regs, before you buy and watch your local officials carefully after you buy,
Stay involved in you community

I don't get the 'good laugh'
If my neighbor was gone and an RV parked on the street in front of it with people I don't recognize living in it, I'd have called the cops too. Good for him and your brother should have thanked him for watching out. Too many tweekers in RV's staking out these days. We get 'em out here in our neck of the woods with regularity.

I also don't see the humor in your brother's response; to damage his own property to spite the neighbor. I suppose the true nature and personality of a man comes through when they have a terminal illness and the reality of mortality slams home. Some try to add more meaning to their existence and some don't give a **** about neighbors or anyone else, realizing the Grim Reaper will beat the Bureaucrat in taking action to stop 'em. Grace and dignity versus in-your-face and up yours.

Sorry for your loss.

[tmm2good]

Glad you talked to someone official, we own 35 acres in Huerfano county as well, and camp there all the time. Our covenants in our area have restrictions on camping, but I have never seen one from the county in the 15 years we have owned there. Guess ignorance is bliss...

[Dustytuu]

The RV club called "The Escapees" may help in something like this. You have to join this organization. The best RV club anywhere!
They have helped people in the past when city or county try's to stop people from storing their RVs on their own property.
I understand about Colorado. We lived there for many years. In unincorporated Elbert County.
Did not have a problem there but knew many people had to fight Aurora, even way out past the city!
Whoever is making this difficult..... storing RVs on their owner's country property do not understand RVing or that lifestyle.

[tpi]

Beautiful!