Building permits, zoning and land rules in Bent County, Colorado

Yes, in unincorporated Bent County. The county zoning resolution says no building may be erected, occupied or moved until the Zoning Enforcement Officer issues a permit, and no permit issues unless the proposal fully complies with the resolution or the Board of Zoning Adjustment has granted a variance¹. Like most counties around it in Colorado, Bent County requires a county building permit¹. The county application covers new construction, additions, modular buildings, alterations, repairs and building removal or moves⁸.

A new building may not be used or occupied without a certificate of occupancy from the Zoning Enforcement Officer, issued within 5 days after the completion notice and a final inspection for conformance with the resolution¹. The application also asks how wastewater and water will be handled, including whether the water source is a permitted well, community system or cistern⁸.

The Bent County Land Use Office is the starting point for a building project. Its application lists P. O. Box 350, Las Animas, Colorado, phone 719-456-2223 and email betty.lawrence@bentcounty.net⁸. The county's published process has the Zoning Enforcement Officer issue permits and certificates, and sends variance requests to the Board of Zoning Adjustment¹.

Ask the Land Use Office to name the parcel's zoning district, confirm whether the use is permitted or needs special review, and give you the current application and fee. The application says a permit fee must accompany the filing⁸. The county's published fees cover zoning appeals ($25 plus notice costs) and subdivision applications, but not a general building-permit fee schedule¹. We could not confirm an adopted county building-code edition, so ask which construction standards and separate trade approvals apply. Inside Las Animas, the city, not the county, sets zoning³.

Yes. Bent County zoning covers unincorporated land, with an official zoning map kept by the County Clerk and Recorder¹. The districts are A-1 Agricultural, R-1 Rural Residential, R-2 and R-3 Urban Residential, B-1 Highway Business, B-2 Central Business, NSD, P.U.D., I-1, I-2 and M.U.D., and each separates permitted uses from special-review uses¹. Las Animas has its own zoning with permitted and special-review uses, so the county districts do not govern land inside the city³. Check Las Animas separately for city lots.

In A-1, front and rear setbacks are 50 feet and side setbacks are 25 feet¹. In R-1, a residence needs 50 feet in front, 15 feet at the side and 25 feet at the rear¹. Building height is generally capped at 35 feet, and a P.U.D. may exceed that with Board of County Commissioners approval¹. Minimum site area is 1 acre in A-1 and R-1, and 7,000 square feet for a single-family dwelling in R-3¹. B-1 limits structure coverage to 50 percent of the site¹.

Colorado requires an on-site wastewater treatment system permit before a system serving a building without sewer service is constructed, altered, installed, repaired or used⁴. Bent County Public Health contracts with Prowers County Public Health for environmental-health services that include enforcing on-site wastewater rules; the listed number is 1(719) 336-8721². Septic permits are not issued by the Land Use Office.

After permitted work, a final inspection and local approval are required before the system is used⁴. In the county's urban services area, new development must connect to existing utilities or provide a central water and sewer system, and new septic tanks are barred on lots created after the zoning ordinance took effect¹. Inside Las Animas, the city code issues no permit for a subsurface absorption system on a lot under 43,560 square feet (one acre)⁹. Only about 36% of mapped county soils rate "not limited" for a conventional drain field, so expect a site evaluation and possibly an engineered system¹⁰. We could not confirm a county-specific septic fee schedule, so ask the public-health contact for the application and inspection sequence.

We could not confirm that a person may live in an RV on a private parcel in unincorporated Bent County. The county's RV rule covers travel trailer parks: a park needs a valid travel trailer park permit and a Bent County Department of Health sanitation permit, at least 4 acres and at least 15 RV sites, with 1 overnight unit per site¹. In A-1, campgrounds and mobile-unit overnight areas are special-review uses¹. Neither answers whether one owner may camp on their own lot, so ask the Land Use Office about the exact parcel, duration and utilities.

A state-regulated tiny home can be approved for long-term living, but its plans need Colorado Division of Housing approval before construction and the unit must satisfy local zoning⁵. For mobile homes in R-3, the Las Animas Urban Service Area requires at least 750 square feet, a permanent foundation, lot ownership and city utilities; elsewhere an R-3 mobile home needs at least 720 square feet, tie-downs and skirting¹. Those minimums are not stated as a rule for every dwelling type.

1. Call the Bent County Land Use Office to confirm the parcel's zoning district, allowed residential use, setbacks, height and whether special review is needed^1,8.
2. Confirm legal water; a new groundwater well generally requires a state permit and may need an augmentation plan⁷.
3. Contact the public-health provider for the septic sequence, or confirm the required utility connection if the site is in the urban services area^1,2.
4. Submit the county permit application and fee⁸.
5. Obtain a Colorado access permit if the driveway meets a state highway¹¹.
6. Finish the work, request the final inspection and get the certificate of occupancy before using the building¹.

Verify the zoning map and allowed use with the Land Use Office before closing, and confirm whether the parcel is in unincorporated county or inside Las Animas city limits, where the city sets zoning^1,3. If a split is involved, Bent County regulates subdivisions through sketch plan, preliminary plat and final plat stages; the sketch-plan fee is $50 and the preliminary-plat fee is $100 for 1 to 15 lots plus advertising¹. A sketch plan must name the proposed water and sewer providers and document water availability¹.

Floodway and flood-fringe land is subject to county floodplain regulations for buildings¹. Direct home access to a state highway needs a Colorado access permit; the county's driveway dimensions in its manual are for travel trailer parks, not ordinary homes^1,11. Water deserves a hard look too: the county averages about 14.3 inches of precipitation a year and has been in severe drought in 43% of years¹⁰.